Arrows repeat as state soccer champions

By Danny C. Davis

Mississippi High School Activity Association State Soccer Championships Class 6A continue to run through Clinton. The Arrow boys claimed their eleventh MHSAA trophy in history on Saturday, February 4, at Ridgeland High School stadium with a tough 2-1 win over rival Brandon. Clinton defeated Northwest Rankin a year ago for the 2022 title.

The Arrows finished the season undefeated with a 21-0-1 record with the number one ranking in Mississippi – and they have also been the top-ranked boys soccer team in the nation in the Max Preps national rankings for the past two months.
Clinton totally dominated the first half and had a lot of scoring opportunities, but couldn’t find the net, which left the game tied 0-0 at the half.

“We felt like we missed several early chances to score in the first fifteen to twenty minutes of the game,” said ten-year Arrow head soccer coach Tyler Wade. “But a lot of credit goes to Brandon. They were very organized in stopping our attack and made it difficult at times to convert. But we knew we were a better second half team all year long.”

And, indeed, CHS proved they were a better second half team. In fact, it didn’t take the Arrows long to take the lead for good early on in the second half, thanks to senior mid fielder Hayden Thomas, who scored both goals for CHS.
When only two minutes had elapsed in the second half, Brandon was called for hand ball infraction inside the box. That resulted in a penalty kick for the Arrows just outside the box. Thomas drove the ball into the back of the net to put to put CHS up 1-0.

That is the way the scoring stood until 12:35 remained and Thomas got open and drove in a 20-yard shot to give the Arrows a 2-0 advantage.

Brandon closed it to 2-1 a minute later on a straight shot.

Clinton’s defense held the Bulldogs scoreless the rest of the way, with multiple saves by goal keeper Jesus Estrada. He shared time in the goal with goal keeper Caleb Pemberton, who played the whole first half in the goal and also made a lot of big saves.

Clinton also received another trophy in the post-game ceremony: Thomas received the trophy for the game’s Most Valuable Player.

“On the second goal, I felt that I could drive at them [Brandon] and just had an open shot,” said Thomas.

Thomas said repeating as state champions was not easy for this year’s squad.

“When we got to 15-0, we felt like we could repeat as champions again,” said Thomas. “But, as the season went on, we were still undefeated, [and] we felt more pressure with the target on our backs. Brandon knew we were defending champions and would have to take us down. We just had to come out and play hard, just like we did all year long.”
Coach Wade agreed.

“I definitely felt going into the year that we had a great chance to at least get back to the championship game,” said Wade. “Once you get that far, it is going to be two really talented teams, and you just have to play your best to win. But I knew the level of our players and knew we had a chance to put it all together and repeat in the Class 6A state championship game.”
When asked about at what point in the season did he feel another title was in grasps this year, Wade responded, “We tested ourselves early in the season against good teams like Ocean Springs and Oak Grove and were able to get quality wins early on. Our confidence grew during the season with every quality win.”

Wade also said that the team’s chemistry played a big role in the championship win.

“We had nine players returning that had started a game for us last year. So, these guys had played quality minutes on last year’s championship game,” said Wade. “But the last few years, I have put more emphasis on our team chemistry. I believe when moments get tough that a team’s collective ability to work together and fight for each other helps determine some results. Talent can take you a long way, but, when you have a team that genuinely cares about each other and wants to work together, it makes a difference. When players collectively lead each other, the accomplishment are endless.”

“Credit goes to our players for never letting the moment get too big and always stepping up to the challenge. Moments like this are really hard to beat. I am really proud of everything we accomplished this year and excited for the future of our program.”