It’s never easy to win a Region Title in any sport and in 5th Region Boys Soccer it’s been downright impossible to threepeat for any team other than Elizabethtown. Cory Yates took over a program back in 2015 and in three short seasons won the first of four straight Region Titles. Last night’s long drawn out 5th Region Championship had a little of everything as Elizabethtown proved their medal as champions again and outlasted the North Hardin Trojans in a shootout. Although the names sometimes change, the results didn’t as the Panthers string of playoff success continued. Now coming into the 2022 season, Yates’ team looked to continue that success, but this time they had a big roadblock in the way.
The North Hardin Trojans came into the 5th Region Tournament with a diverse offensive attack and the best defense in the Region (allowing just 16-goals coming into the Region Final) and coach Jim Stone’s team had owned the only win in the District over the Panthers in the 17th District final Shootout. Also, this was Stone’s final season as head coach stepping down after getting his 303rd victory against Thomas Nelson to reach the Region final and have one more chance to extend his season and the team’s. So, after Cole Varela scored early in the first half, it looked like the Panthers might have the game in hand early, Varela had scored in each of the past three North Hardin-Elizabethtown games this season and this time was no different, but as the Trojans extended their defensive stance Varela and Elizabethtown would get no more.
So even after a weather game stoppage (two to be exact) and five-minute halftime break, it still looked like the Panthers had the game in hand until North Hardin finally punched one in to tie things up midway through the second half. For Yates, this seemed like a replay (and a bad one) of the 17th District Championship last week in which a 2-2 tie went through two extra periods and a shootout would end up deciding the champion. Sure enough, that’s exactly what happened as both teams prepared for a shootout as two groups of ten took the field. While Yates and Stone both stood quietly on the sideline, both coaches must have entertained the thought of either moving on or the possibility of having their season ended. With pretty much the same shooting lineups from just a week ago, E-Town and North Hardin were 3-makes 1-miss going into the fifth series when both Cole Varela and Phil Murrell missed their shots. So the shootout drifted into the next set which saw E-Town’s Jagger Ireland and Nick Blair make there’s and North Hardin’s Aaron Mohammed and Braedon Herron split giving Elizabethtown the Title.
As Yates watched quietly during the shootout, the thought had to cross his mind if this was it. If the Region Title streak would finally come to an end. So many things may have pointed to it. When you play as many games as Elizabethtown had during their Region reign, you have to have a little luck to go along with the talent. Just last week, the Trojans scored their first goal after being held scoreless against the Panthers in the District final when a shot bounced off a Panther after being redirected away from the goal and bounced in. Things like that are sometimes a sign. This time, it didn’t happen and Yates got his fifth Title and first celebratory Gatorade bath from the players. Champions always seem to find a way to win or wait for the opponent to stumble. The Panthers have continued to find their way through troubled waters and although the streak will eventually come to an end, it won’t on this day as Elizabethtown will prepare for another KHSAA State Tournament game and thank their lucky stars that when it came down to a shootout they didn’t flinch.
