FORT SMITH -- It's already been a senior year to remember for Fort Smith Southside forward Greyson York. It got a whole lot better Friday night at Mayo-Thompson Stadium.
York, who signed with Friends University just last week, provided the game-winning goal with six minutes left in a 2-1 victory to lift Southside past rival Fort Smith Northside in a 6A-West matchup.
"This is not only a dream come true, but it's everything I've been working for," York said. "It all came to fruition in just that moment. To do it in front of the crowd at Northside is even better. When I saw the clock hit six minutes, I knew it was go time. I'm just trying to make the most of my last year here."
York found himself about 25 yards away from the goal before he fired and found the back of the net. He nearly connected on a free kick earlier in the second half off a lengthy try that was saved.
Southside (3-5-2, 1-0 6A-West) beat Northside (4-3-2, 0-2 6A-West) for the first time since 2012 in a 1-0 victory last year and made it back-to-back in the matchup Friday.
"I did hear some people say it was a fluke last year," Southside Coach Mahmoud Ihmeidan said. "It was nice to win this one on the road this time around. Greyson has had an awesome career and only added to it with that goal. We were playing great all game dominating the possession. We lacked a little bit of a threat, but we'll take that second goal. That was a big one."
It didn't take Southside long to jump ahead in the contest. Senior forward Grayson Baber scored inside the box just seven minutes into the game off a lengthy assist from Austin Ramos.
"That was an amazing pass from Austin," Baber said. "It was a nice ball. It's always great to beat Northside and get a conference win."
Northside later in the first half found the equalizer set up off a 50-yard free kick. Senior defender Michael Trinidad delivered the ball inside the box before junior forward Christian Franco tied it at 1-1 for the Grizzlies 17 minutes into the contest.
"That was a great goal for us," Northside Coach Mauricio Maciel said. "We are working on Christian being a little more comfortable with his footwork. He has the skills and speed to go one-on-one against players. But it has taken a while to get it out of him. Once he starts doing that more, we will capitalize on that."
The game went into halftime tied at 1-1 despite both teams getting good looks to take a lead. Northside and Southside both had shot-on-goal attempts that were saved in the final 11 minutes of the opening half.
Northside received its best chance to score after the break when Trinidad took a penalty kick, but it was saved by Southside sophomore goalkeeper Rafael Luevano with 30 minutes left in the game.
"I was put under a lot of pressure, but I don't fold," Luevano said. "I took my chances with a guess, and I guessed right. It was a big chance. The offense was finding the connections. We finished. I'm proud of the guys."
Maciel said he thought the penalty kick miss was when the game turned against Northside, but he couldn't be more proud of the effort Trinidad gave. He assisted on a goal, had a shot on goal and nearly had two more assists on the night doing it all for the Grizzlies as a playmaker.
"After the penalty kick, our entire mentality changed," Maciel said. "We dominated the last part of the first half. But emotionally we went down on ourselves early in the second half after the penalty kick didn't go in. Trinidad played so well though. Not only is he a captain, he is really holding this team together. It was unlucky for him on the penalty kick. I wouldn't think twice for him to take another penalty kick. We know he can put it in. He was simply unlucky."
Ihmeidan, too, said he felt like the penalty save was just the spark Southside needed to finish the game strong and find a way to win.
"That was huge," Ihmeidan said. "If he doesn't save that then who knows what happens. It was big for him. I wasn't sure it was a penalty, but he saved it anyway. We played unbelievable."
Girls
Fort Smith Northside 7, Fort Smith Southside 0
Meghan Hutchison has been primarily a defender in her career at Northside, but her coach wanted to see what she could do Friday as an attacker. It's safe to say she passed the test.
Hutchison scored the first goal of the game just four minutes into the contest and finished with a three-goal night for a hat trick to help the Lady Bears roll against their rival. It was an unforgettable night for the seniors, who scored every goal in the game with Hutchison, Jennifer Iturriaga, Azucena Castillo, Rosa Centeno and Elena Centeno all contributing.
"I used to play offense my freshman and sophomore year at my old school, so I guess I just brought out those old skills," Hutchison said with a smile. "It took a little bit. But I eventually got there. I'm so happy for all of us to score. We all work so, so hard. It means a lot for the seniors. That's something coach talked about before the game and I think that helped push us to try harder."
Northside took control early and never looked back. The Lady Bears had a 3-0 lead just nine minutes into the game. The score remained 3-0 at halftime before Northside found its groove quickly in the second half scoring three goals in 11 minutes to put the game well out of reach.
It was bittersweet for Maciel seeing only seniors score for Northside on the night. But he knows that group isn't done yet after the Lady Bears won a playoff game last season and want to push for more this year.
"It was nice to see, but it's unfortunate because we will be losing nearly this entire starting team at the end of the year," Maciel said. "We are going to miss them. But we hope they are going to continue to do well and take us deep into the playoffs."
Fort Smith Northside midfielder Bryan Lopez dribbles the ball during a soccer match against Fort Smith Southside on Friday at Mayo-Thompson Stadium. (Special to River Valley Democrat-Gazette/Leland Barclay)