CLASS 4A BOYS SOCCER

Mondragon carries Warren to trophy

FAYETTEVILLE -- After falling short last season in the title game, Warren worked its way back and picked up its first boys soccer championship.

Warren senior Daniel Mondragon scored twice in the final 28 minutes to help the Lumberjacks pull away in a 2-0 victory against Berryville in the Class 4A championship game at Razorback Field on Saturday.

"There is a big community in Warren that loves soccer," Warren Coach Taylor Wood said. "It's a big sports town and a championship town. We're glad to bring this back and establish that even more."

Mondragon broke the Berryville defense when he scored to take a 1-0 lead in the 62nd minute on an assist from Jesus Tinoco.

"He is our stud," Wood said of Mondragon. "He is the guy we want to have the ball. We knew if we could defend like we always do and get him the ball, it would look good for our chances."

It didn't take Mondragon long to find the back of the net again. He scored two minutes later, this time on an assist from Saloman Garay.

"Mondragon is a great player and has scored a lot of goals this season," Berryville Coach Dyllan Candelaria said. "We told our guys to keep the ball away from him. We clearly didn't do that enough. That's what happens. He made two great plays."

Warren senior goalkeeper Brandon Resendiz kept the Berryville offense off the board despite being tested often. Resendiz finished with five saves after seeing 24 total shots.

"I think our defense was underestimated early in the year," Wood said. "But I think it's the best defense in the state of Arkansas. We knew coming into this game it was going to be a tight out. Berryville is a really good team. We just had the edge on defense."

Berryville (13-2-1) kept the game scoreless in the first half after having defenders save two balls off the line, and goalkeeper Robert Quiquivix had four first-half saves.

"We hang our hat on our defensive play," Candelaria said. "We play the entire game from bell to bell. It's been a great year for us. It's unfortunate to get second. But it's something to not be upset at. A lot of people didn't expect us to make it this far. We felt we had the talent and put it together."

Warren (17-1-1) finished with 24 shots, including nine on target, to keep up the pressure behind its defense.

"We knew if we could just keep playing we'd have a chance to score," Wood said. "Once we got the first goal, we said two and we can breathe. When we get that first goal, there is just something with these guys they put the pedal to the metal."

Warren made it to the championship game a season ago but fell 6-1 to Dardanelle. Wood said the team was motivated to make it back and break through.

"We had a lot of things to overcome last year," Wood said. "It just didn't work out for us. We came in this year healthy and playing our best soccer. It felt different throughout the season. It was a different vibe after last season."

Sports on 05/20/2018

Upcoming Events