Warrior defense powers them to five-peat

It was supposed to be a down year for Warrior Soccer, but the season ended with the Warriors winning their fifth straight 3A State soccer championship in Green River on May 20.

"They've been resilient all season long. They refused to lose and took it one day at a time," said WHS boys soccer coach Ron Overcast. "They worked hard in practice and were coachable. I have a great coaching staff, and I'm really proud of the boys. They don't know how to lose but know how to win. They do what it takes to win a game and did it all last weekend."

The Warriors claimed their fifth consecutive championship with a 3-1 win over Douglas, ending their season with a 15-0-1 record and extending their unbeaten streak to 80 games.

"It's crazy," said Warrior keeper Kade Weber after the Warriors downed Douglas. "I've grown up with these guys since I was in second grade. We've been playing sports the whole time. To win championships in our last two sports, I'm just all smiles right now."

Court Gonsalez scored two goals in the championship game, with Tyshon Swalstad scoring the other.

Swalstad was among the many Warriors who had an excellent state tournament. The junior was a menace in the midfield and a playmaker on the attack.

Against Douglas, his attacking play got Worland their first goal. He drove the ball into the 18 and sent a nice cross to Gonsalez, who put the ball in the net.

"Tyshon had a breakout season in this tournament," said Overcast. "He caught the eye of a couple of college coaches. Tyshon plays a lot bigger than he is, and every time you look up. Tyshon was taking the ball from somebody. He had an outstanding tournament."

With the Warriors not having the offensive firepower they had in past seasons, defense would be this team's calling card.

Worland used their defense to carry them through their conference schedule and 3A State tournament.

The Warriors only allowed seven goals this season, which ties for second-best in program history, and only allowed one goal at the state tournament.

In the quarterfinals, the Warriors handled Lander 4-0 with goals from Gonsalez (two), Trae Bennett (one) and Fisher Martinez (one).

The Warriors semifinal game against the Cody Broncs was the team's toughest battle, but the Warriors rose to the occasion and played their best.

Cody had a size advantage on Worland, but the Warriors had that championship experience to lean on.

The game's only goal came midway through the second half when Drew Schneider found Gonsalez on a throw-in. Gonsalez, with a swarm of Broncs around him, dribbled his way through the 18, freed up just enough space to take a shot that went to the bottom right corner of the goal.

"Cody is a talented team, but the boys were up for a challenge. We knew on their set pieces, we'd have to get their tall kids marked up. That Cody game was the best game we played all season. The Tuesday before state, we talked about if you get on the field, even for a minute, give us the best you've ever played. We repeated that throughout the tournament, and the boys stepped up and did that. We played so well defensively.

"Drew had a beautiful throw-in to Court, and Court got it and made a couple of moves and cut that ball back on that keeper. On Court's celebration Court came running down the sidelines and motioned to me. I thought he needed a sub, but he said, 'No, drop me back.' He scored with 19 minutes left and then went into that defensive mode as a defensive midfielder. We shut them down and did a great job closing out that game," said Overcast.

After Gonsalez's goal, the Warriors turned up the defensive intensity, and the opportunities for the Broncs to get an equalizer were scarce.

"Cody was sky-high going into that game. They really wanted to beat us. We had to absorb the first 20 minutes in the second half with their high energy. After that, the game settled down, and we got into a flow. The boys handled that situation very well.

"After Court's goal, the game changed. Cody was vocal in that game, but after that goal, it went quiet," said Overcast. "We knew they were going to be tough to beat. It was no different than any other team. We're always going to get a team's best shot because of what we've built and what we've done in the past. Everyone wants to be the team to beat us for the first time in a very long time. I'm so proud of the boys for handling that pressure. For a bunch of teenage boys to handle that pressure and perform the way they did makes me so proud."

The 3A State tournament also showed the 3A East wasn't weak, in fact, it was the better conference. Three of the four teams in the semifinals were from the East.

"We had those two shootout games late in the season, and people asked about what's wrong with Worland. I think the West found out what was wrong with Worland. Those other East teams were a lot better than people thought they were. They're tough to play against. Since I've been coaching, I don't think there have been three East teams in the semifinals.

"Douglas has a really good program. They're heading in the right direction. We had only scored one goal on them in the conference season. So I was pretty happy we were able to get two fairly quickly and a third one," said Overcast.

Look to next week for a recap of the Warriors soccer season.