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Anoka boys' soccer pulls off mission improbable

By David La Vaque, Star Tribune, 11/04/14, 4:30PM CST

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The Tornadoes dispatched two previously undefeated teams, beating Minnetonka and Maple Grove.

“Do you believe in miracles? They did it, baby!”

So began Anoka boys’ soccer assistant coach Todd Springer’s phone conversation not long after the Tornadoes completed their improbable run from sixth in their conference to Class 2A state champions.

“You’ve got be lucky, you’ve got to work hard and you’ve got to believe in the system,” Anoka head coach Pete Hayes said. “These kids believed in our system. We played in-your-face soccer. We can’t match up skill-wise but we can steal balls and counterattack. We’re kind of like a Jacques Lemaire team. We play a defensive style, counterattack and try to get what we can get. And the kids never quit.”

The Tornadoes dispatched two previously undefeated teams, beating Minnetonka and Star Tribune Metro Player of the Year Suad Suljic in the final moments in the quarterfinals and No. 2 seed Maple Grove in double overtime in the semifinals.

Relying on memory rather than consulting records, Hayes believed this unseeded team, which entered the state tournament a mediocre 12-6-1, carried more losses than any state tournament entrant in his 27 years as coach.

Playing the championship game at Husky Stadium in St. Cloud before a healthy contingent of Anoka fans — several draped in American flags to represent the United State’s ‘‘Miracle on Ice’’ hockey upset in the 1980 Winter Olympics — the Tornadoes trailed 1-0 at halftime against No. 4 seed Wayzata before tying the score to force overtime.

The teams went to penalty kicks. Anoka’s Joshua Dobler, Conner Hudalla, Billy Hentges, Donnie Guimont all made their attempts. Wayzata’s fourth shot went off the crossbar, giving Michael Talbot the first chance to cement the victory.

No pressure, Hayes tried telling Talbot, but the youngster put high expectations on himself.

‘‘He said, ‘I’m going to be the hero,’ ” Hayes said. “He likes the big situations.”

Larson runs to glory

St. Anthony Village senior Nicholas Lawson set two school records with his Class 2A state cross-country meet performance, ending his high school career in style.

He placed 15th overall, covering the 5,000-meter course at St. Olaf College in Northfield in 15 minutes, 54.6 seconds. No St. Anthony runner has posted a faster time or placed higher at the 2A meet.

 

David La Vaque • 612-673-7574