Since November 11th, 2023, Jesuit Men’s Soccer has dealt with the pain of losing by a goal in the OSAA State Championship against Lakeridge. A year later, Jesuit had a second chance at the title after beating Lincoln and McNary to advance to the state final held at Hillsboro Stadium last Saturday. Despite falling behind 2-0 in the final, Tthe team didn’t let the opportunity go to waste this time.
“We just refused to take no for an answer. We weren’t going to let there be any regrets after our final game,” senior forward Diego Nieves said.
“No one gave up when we got down. We just had so much grit, we won that game solely off passion. We know that we wanted it more, for us seniors, the fans, the coaches, my teammates. We had an unmatched desire to win that game. I’m so proud of the boys,” senior midfielder Grant Sasaki said.
With 11 minutes left in Jesuit’s third straight State Championship game, down 2-0 to McMinnville, with only 10 men after junior Carlos Botiva picked up a red card early in the second half, Jesuit’s hope was dwindling, thinking about the season that had led them to this point.
“We’ve had a passionate team all year. Anybody who has come to games has seen the way we play together and the belief we have. That was what we relied on all season and what created some of the most special memories of my life,” junior defender Henry Vanderhoff said.
Jesuit had finished the regular season with 11 wins, 1 draw, and 2 losses, the losses coming against #1 ranked Lakeridge and the best 5A team Summit. Jesuit tied 1-1 in a scrappy contest against Metro League rival Beaverton to ultimately tie the league.
”I think that the Beaverton game was the turning point for us. We went from excited to get another crack at state to feeling like this was our year to win. We got better throughout the fall and the team bond that we created was different than any other year,” senior forward Caden Hoppes said.
The Saders had a total of eight seniors on the squad this year, many who have been in the program for years now. All of them knew how much ending some of their journeys on a win was.
“This whole year has been special for me as a senior. After the way last year ended, I knew I wanted to end the journey on a memory that would last a lifetime. Especially with these guys who I made a bond with, and that’s definitely what happened,” Sasaki said.
So, in 45 degrees and a constant downpour, Jesuit wasn’t just competing against McMinnville, but the elements as well. With players cramping on every dead ball and Grant Sasaki getting taken off the field in an ambulance in the later stages of the game due to hypothermia, the team was playing for more than themselves.
With goals from McMinnville in the 5th and 39th minute, and a red card on Jesuit’s end in the 49th, the drama of the match began.
In the 69th minute, junior midfielder Cooper Cardwell got the ball on the left side of the penalty box before assisting to the eventual player of the game Dominic Bolouri, turning the momentum of the Jesuit crowd, and sparking the comeback.
Jesuit rallied defensively in the final minutes of the game despite great attacking play from McMinnville. With everyone assuming Jesuit only had time for one good move left, the Crusaders got into an attacking position, and ultimately earned a free kick from 25 yards out with 58 seconds left, an extremely dangerous place to be as a McMinnville fan.
The crowd on their feet, Jesuit knew who would be taking their final shot, sophomore forward Vala Saghafi, the leading goal scorer for Jesuit and Metro League Player of the Year.
“He’s been so huge for us this year. He has the green light, we all have belief in what he’s capable of and know that he is a player who can and has won matches for us, so when we got that opportunity outside of the box in that position, we knew he was burying it,” Sasaki said.
Longtime head coach Geoff Skipper had the ultimate confidence in his star player, ““He’s an incredible player,” Skipper said. “He does incredible things all the time, so to be honest with you, that he scored a goal like that does not shock me. He’s hard to keep out of the net. Even with two minutes left, I know he’s got one in him.”
Saghafi did what he’s done all year. Despite being contained in the first 75 minutes, Vala placed the ball perfectly, directly in the left side of the goal to sneak around the goalie and extend the match, a goal that will go down in OSAA history. The crowd erupted, and for the first time in the night, McMinnville was silenced.
All of a sudden, one man down in the wet and cold, the Crusaders were energized.
Jesuit managed to survive through the two 10 minute extra time periods, with confidence in junior goalie Fox Mason to come through for their squad in penalties.
The Crusaders’ belief and togetherness proved itself in the penalty shootout. Nieves, Saghafi, Bolouri, and Schmidt all scored, while Fox Mason, who earned 2nd Team All-Metro honors, saved McMinnville’s 4th penalty, securing the Jesuit win, and completing both a historic and electric comeback in a game that anyone in the stadium will remember for a long time.
“We created a motto of ‘Anyone But Us’ in the middle of the year. We truly believed that even when it didn’t look like we should. To get it done in the way we did, in arguably the greatest state final of all time in Oregon, we earned it,” Nieves said.
“I believe that it just shows how much brotherhood matters. It shows how great sports are, that was ridiculous, it still doesn’t feel real,” Hoppes quoted after the game.
Jesuit proved unbroken and unbeatable all season. In one of the wildest finishes in Oregon high school sports, cnot only did the Crusaders make history, but they created memories and brothers that will last a lifetime.
