Marquee matchup ends in a draw as Warriors hold on to 1st place

Snow Canyon's Cole Trotter (10), Dixie vs. Snow Canyon, Boys Soccer, St. George, Utah, Apr. 6, 2018, | Photo by Robert Hoppie, ASPpix.com, St. George News

ST. GEORGE – With first place on the line and every potential scored goal critical to the success of Region 9’s top two soccer teams, it was the defense and goalkeepers that stole the spotlight Friday night at Flyer Stadium. Dixie and Snow Canyon played two 40-minute halves of regulation and two 10-minute overtimes and neither squad could break through in a 0-0 draw.

The visiting Warriors come out the big-picture winner with the draw, as it enabled them to hold onto first place with a 5-0-2 record in region play (17 points). Dixie, 4-0-3, is two points behind Snow Canyon with five games remaining on both teams’ schedules.

“Both teams played really hard – what a great game,” Warriors coach Marc Wittwer said. “There were a lot of injuries, but both teams showed a lot of love and respect for each other. We had two freshman and a sophomore go in due to injuries and they brought a whole new level of energy and enthusiasm and the team just fed off of them.”

Snow Canyon’s Austin Mild (00), Dixie vs. Snow Canyon, Boys Soccer, St. George, Utah, Apr. 6, 2018, | Photo by Robert Hoppie, ASPpix.com, St. George News

The stars of the game were the two teams’ defenses, and the respective goalkeepers on each side. Austin Mild got the shutout for the Warriors and Kieran Atkin recorded the whitewashing for the Flyers.

“Getting a tie on the road is not the ideal result, but we got a point out of it and we’ve still got a two-point lead in region, so we’re feeling good about it,” said Mild, who recorded his fifth shutout of the season. “Overtime is exciting – 20 more minutes of playing soccer and saving shots. There’s not much pressure when we’ve got such a great defense.”

While both teams had opportunities, there was never a point when a goal seemed imminent. The keepers both turned away shots, but the defenses made sure those moments were few and far between.

“Two great teams – they had their chances and we had our chances, but the keepers made great plays all game long,” Dixie coach Burt Myers said. “That’s just two great teams playing soccer. What I liked best was if there was a crash or a hurt kid or something, each team showed class and helped each other up.”

Dixie’s Kieran Atkin (00), Dixie vs. Snow Canyon, Boys Soccer, St. George, Utah, Apr. 6, 2018, | Photo by Robert Hoppie, ASPpix.com, St. George News

With Mild and Atkin (who also has five shutouts this year) taking center stage, scoring stars like Snow Canyon’s Yetzel Carrillo and Dixie’s Tauri Morales were kept off the scoreboard. The tie also means the Warriors have the advantage with five games left.

“I would’ve liked to have gotten the win, but we played hard and I’m happy about that,” Witter said. “We’re still in first place, so that’s great. But we have some tough games coming up.”

Myers said the race for the region crown will likely come down to the rematch between the two teams at the end of this month.

“I’m sure we’d both love to win out between now and then, but it won’t be easy,” he said. “We’re only a little bit more than halfway through. Anything can happen in this region – anything.”

Dixie is at Cedar next Tuesday (4 p.m.), while Snow Canyon goes home to face third-place Desert Hills that same night.

Thursday night’s results
Desert Hills 3, Hurricane 0
Pine View 3, Cedar 2

Friday night’s result
Dixie 0, Snow Canyon 0 (F/2OT)

Region 9 boys soccer standings (region, points, overall)
Snow Canyon  5-0-2, 17, 5-0-4
Dixie  4-0-3, 15, 6-0-3
Desert Hills  4-1-2, 14, 6-2-2
Pine View  3-3-1, 10, 4-6-1
Canyon View  3-4-0, 9, 4-4-2
Hurricane  1-5-0, 3, 1-8-0
Cedar  0-7-0, 0, 1-8-0

Next Tuesday’s games
Dixie at Cedar, 4 p.m.
Canyon View at Hurricane, 7 p.m.
Desert Hills at Snow Canyon, 7 p.m


Email: [email protected]

Twitter: @oldschoolag

Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2018, all rights reserved.

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