Middle Creek wins big against Jordan in soccer playoffs
After losing their final two regular season matches, Middle Creek made a quick turnaround and thrashed Jordan 5-1 in the first round of the NCHSAA 4A boys soccer playoffs Wednesday night.
With the victory, 16th-seed Middle Creek (18-5) earned a trip to No. 1 Apex on Saturday. Despite sporting a 78.2 winning percentage, the Mustangs were relegated to No. 16 due in part to their third-place finish in the Southwest Wake Athletic Conference, setting them up for an inevitable third meeting with the Cougars.
“I’m doing pretty good, except for our bracket,” Middle Creek coach Guy Coleman said. “There’s some issues with the bracket, I’m new to the state and still figuring it all out. I can’t say I agree with the 16 (seed).”
The Mustangs’ performance against No. 17 Jordan (13-8) – who outscored their final two regular season opponents 16-3 – is keeping Coleman optimistic.
“What you saw today is what we practice and what we preach, if we play that way against Apex, anything can happen,” he said. “It’s tough to beat a team three times.”
The Mustangs raced out to a quick lead, putting in a trio of goals in the first 11 minutes.
Colin Frie put in his first goal in during the third minute, being the beneficiary of a long throw-in from Chris Wallace. Six minutes later, Frie weaved his way through the Jordan defense, sliding the ball past Nick Cataldo to earn the brace.
“Scoring those goals is an unbelievable feeling when it’s in the first home playoff game in school history,” Frie said. “It really boosted our energy and effort.”
The Mustangs’ third goal also came off a throw-in, as Wallace’s heave found the head of Tyler Conrad who placed the ball on the inside pipe to mark Middle Creek’s third goal of the night.
The Falcons’ fortunes continue to sputter, as Hunter Hurst’s shot in the 24th minute ricocheted off a Jordan center back into the back of the net.
Four minutes before the halftime break, the Falcons finally made a mark on the scoreboard when Jack High poked in a loose ball to narrow the Mustangs’ lead to 4-1.
Despite taking each of the first two shots in the second half, Jordan conceded first when Wallace dribbled past Cataldo before firing the ball into the open net. Neither team would score in the final half hour of play, as Middle Creek rested many of their key players.
Middle Creek made a Cinderalla story run to the eastern semifinals last year, one Frie thinks the team can repeat as he makes his final run in high school soccer.
“We have just as much heart, if not more than we did in the playoffs last year, just as much skill,” Frie said. “This year I think we can go even deeper, even with playing Apex in the next round.”
This story was originally published November 5, 2015 at 2:35 PM with the headline "Middle Creek wins big against Jordan in soccer playoffs."