The horn sounds as an emotional boys soccer coach David Crowell walks towards the St. John’s Prep student section with his hands in the air – a picture that Eagles’ fans will never forget.
It’s been 16 years since the Eagles have been crowned champions. On Saturday afternoon in front of a raucous crowd at Manning Field, they did it again, defeating Needham 2-0 in the Division 1 state championship.
“I’m so proud of these kids,” Crowell said. “Just so proud of these kids, for our communities, for our school. Yeah, 16 years is a long time.”
In a fast-paced, intense, and occasionally chippy matchup, the Eagles capitalized on their chances while Prep goalkeeper Ioannis Andrikopoulos stopped everything thrown at him. An Alexander Borkland dish to Callum Rigby set up the only score of the first half. Chance Prouty finished a pass from Ross O’Brien to double the lead to 2-0 in the second half.
Crowell said Needham plays just like Prep with its ability to move the ball quickly and make the defense chase. Noting Needham’s midfielders and wingers were hard to contain, Crowell gave credit to a talented Rockets team. Despite a second half surge from Needham after the Eagles dominated time of possession in the first half, the Prep stayed strong on the backend and kept things away from Andrikopoulos for the most part.
“Congratulations to Needham on a great season, great game,” Crowell said. “That first 10-15 minutes of the second half was nerve-wracking.”
With the Eagles being quicker to loose balls and sharper with their passes early on, things finally paid off on a corner. Borkland sent the ball across and after an initial save, Rigby found the loose ball before shooting it off-balance and into the net for the 1-0 lead.
The second half wasn’t as smooth for the Eagles, but they capitalized when it mattered. Prouty caught up to the ball with 13:47 remaining and kicked a roller into the opposite portion of the net for a commanding 2-0 lead.
“Well that solidified it for me, personally, because we haven’t given up two goals all season,” Crowell said.
Following the final whistle, every player on the Eagles roster went to celebrate with the student section before receiving their medals at midfield. Crowell said he saw the potential of his group on the first day of June conditioning – and ever since giving up a double-overtime goal to Brookline in last season’s quarterfinals that ended the Eagles’ season.
“We’ve been talking about a state title all year. We knew we were that good. Normally, I don’t let them talk about that kind of stuff but I felt that we were good enough,” Crowell said. This year, we proved it.”
Beyond the results on the turf, Crowell believes his team can take away some valuable life lessons and that Saturday afternoon will never be forgotten for them.
“They take away hard work first of all, teamwork. These kids believed in each other from the beginning,” Crowell said. “I know this is a cliche and every Prep coach says it about the brotherhood, but it’s true.”
Joey Barrett can be reached at joseph@itemlive.com
