Region 9 soccer recap: Close contests mark end of regular season, 4A state playoff bracket set

Canyon View goalkeeper Aspen Bergener turns away a penalty kick during overtime shootout at Desert Hills, St. George, Utah, Oct. 6, 2020 | Photo by Dave Larson, St. George News / Cedar City News

ST. GEORGE — In a night of close games and upsets, the Region 9 regular season of girls soccer wrapped up Tuesday. Two of the contests were decided by penalty-kick shootouts after overtime. 

One of the overtime games was Canyon View at region champion Desert Hills, with the Falcons winning the PK shootout to complete the season sweep of the Thunder. Although Desert Hills still clinched the Region 9 title, they dropped to No. 7 in the final RPI rankings for 4A soccer, while region runner-up Canyon View climbed to the No. 6 spot, according to the Utah High School Activities Association’s 4A state playoff bracket unveiled Wednesday morning.

Following are recaps of Tuesday night’s contests, with information on each Region 9 team’s initial playoff opponent:

Canyon View 1, Desert Hills 1 (Canyon View wins shootout 4-2)

At Desert Hills, Maia Parry kicked a goal 15 minutes into the game, giving the Thunder a 1-0 halftime lead. Then, with about 13 minutes left in the second half, Canyon View senior Addison Newman scored an equalizer. 

“This gave us hope and encouragement,” said Newman’s father and Canyon View head coach Steven Newman. “The rest of the second half and both overtimes were intense. Both sides did not want to lose.”

Canyon View at Desert Hills, St. George, Utah, Oct. 6, 2020 | Photo by Dave Larson, St. George News / Cedar City News

In the deciding PK shootout, Canyon View made four of their five shot attempts, while Desert Hills converted two, as Canyon View goalkeeper Aspen Bergener stopped three of the Thunder’s shots.

“Aspen was huge tonight,” Newman said. “She was aggressive in her field play, and in the shootout, she played out of her mind.”

Newman added that all of the girls played well and contributed to the win.

“Our defense was solid,” he said. “They only made one mistake, and (Desert Hills) scored off it.”

Canyon View secured the No. 6 seed in the playoff bracket. After a first-round bye, the Falcons will host No. 11 seed Mountain Crest on Oct. 14 at 4 p.m. Desert Hills, the No. 7 seed in the playoff bracket, also has a first-round bye before hosting No. 10 Pine View on Oct. 14 at 4 p.m.

Hurricane 1, Pine View 1 (Hurricane wins shootout 3-1)

At Hurricane, the Tigers and Panthers each scored a goal in the first half but were unable to score again during the remainder of regulation, plus two 10-minute overtime periods. During the ensuing penalty kick shootout, Hurricane goalie Jazz Shannon turned away three shots to give the Tigers the win.

Both Pine View and Hurricane will face teams from their own region in their first playoff games. Pine View, which earned the No. 10 seed in the bracket, will have a first-round bye, after which they’ll play at Desert Hills on Oct. 14 at 4 p.m.

Meanwhile, Hurricane will play Dixie in the playoffs, after both teams finished 5-9 in region play and were ranked No. 16 and 17, respectively, in the RPI. That first-round game will be hosted by  Hurricane on Saturday at 1 p.m.

Snow Canyon 1, Cedar 0

At Snow Canyon, Lilly Wittwer took an assist from Tessa Thornton and scored for the Warriors early in the second half. That was the game’s only goal, as Snow Canyon held on for the 1-0 win over Cedar. Ruth Sumner earned the shutout at goalkeeper.

Snow Canyon finished the season ranked 13th in the RPI rankings and will host No. 20 Bear River in the first round Saturday at 1 p.m. Cedar finished 14th and will host No. 19 Tooele, also on Saturday at 1 p.m.

Dixie 1, Crimson Cliffs 0 

Dixie at Crimson Cliffs, Washington City, Utah, Oct. 7, 2020 | Photo by Jacqui Knighton, St. George News

At Crimson Cliffs, the Dixie Flyers upset the Mustangs, with McKell Williams scoring the only goal of the game during the second half. Katie Mills earned the shutout for Dixie.

As the No. 12 playoff seed, Crimson Cliffs will host No. 21 Ben Lomond in the first round Saturday at 1 p.m. Meanwhile, Dixie, the No. 17 seed, will play Satruday at 1 p.m. at Hurricane.

Final Region 9 regular season girls soccer standings (region record, overall, RPI)

  1. Desert Hills 10-4 (10-6) 7th in final RPI rankings.
  2. Canyon View 8-6 (10-6) 6th RPI.
  3. Crimson Cliffs 8-6 (9-7) 12th RPI.
  4. Pine View 7-7 (9-7) 10th RPI.
  5. Snow Canyon 7-7 (8-8) 13th RPI.
  6. Cedar 6-8 (7-9) 14th RPI.
  7. Hurricane 5-9 (5-11) 16th RPI.
  8. Dixie 5-9 (5-12) 17th RPI.

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Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2020, all rights reserved.

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