Naples boys soccer headed to first state championship in 28 years with 3-0 win over Jesuit
Naples coach Bob Prange instilled belief in his team early on.
The seventh-year head coach had a good feeling that his team could hoist a state title all the way back in October — if they peaked at the right time.
After Saturday night, that dream is just one game away from becoming reality.
The Golden Eagles came away with a 3-0 win at Tampa Jesuit, punching their ticket to the Class 5A State Championship. It's their first state championship appearance in 28 years when the team made their debut in a state title game in 1995.
“Our issue was that we had a lot of talent in training and tryouts," Prange said. "We had ups and downs with different players. I was adjusting lineups every single night. I knew with what we had; we could pull it together at the right time. The kids never gave up and followed the system. When the kids believe in the system, you can take it pretty far.”
Cason Shepard scored the first goal for Naples (16-4-3) just before the first-half water break in the 19th minute. Just five minutes later, senior forward Harvey Sarajian doubled the lead for Naples in the 24th minute.
“It was a complete team effort, and we were completely solid on the back line," Prange said. "We played with the three backs, which is a little more risky, but that gives us more chances with Harvey and Ty (Collins) up top.”
“I’ve been playing Harvey at the 6, and up top. We wanted to take it at them. He set up the first goal for Cason, and he scored the next two. When you have a guy like that, your chances are really good.”
Sarajian would tack on another in the second half, icing the game in the 63rd minute to go up 3-0, denying the Tigers any chance of coming back.
“If you take a look at our schedule, it’s really prepared us for this run in the playoffs," Prange said. "We played American Heritage, St. Thomas Aquinas, Belen Jesuit, Canterbury, and Bishop Verot. And that doesn’t include the local teams in Golden Gate, Barron Collier, Immokalee, and Lely.”
The Golden Eagles will get a chance to vanquish one of those opponents, as they'll face American Heritage in the Class 5A State Championship next Saturday. Naples fell to the Patriots 3-2 earlier this season. Two of their goals came on penalty kicks five minutes apart.
"We'll be ready," Prange said.
Follow Southwest Florida Sports Writer Alex Martin on Twitter: @NP_AlexMartin. For the best sports coverage in Southwest Florida, follow @newspresssports and @ndnprepzone on Instagram.
This article originally appeared on Naples Daily News: Naples headed to first state title game since 1995 with 3-0 win over Jesuit
