The noise of cowbells filled the air as vast amounts of supporters of both Pioneer and Huron High School came to Huron’s stadium to cheer on both teams in the District championship soccer game.
The game had a slow start, but there was considerably more action picking up at the end of the first half. After CHS Junior Samuel Grand was subbed on, he made an immediate impact, adding more pace to Pioneer’s front line and had a big chance saved by a defender in the 36th minute. A minute later, Huron forward Kinley Poole scored the first goal of the game for Huron off a long ball over the top that found him in the penalty box. Poole put the goal away and gave Huron an advantage going into halftime.
“I was concerned that we had left everything on the field against Skyline, but the boys proved me wrong and really played their hearts out tonight,” Jon Sundermann said, the Pioneer coach.
In the second half, Grand was again a major difference-maker for Pioneer; he assisted their only goal in the 69th minute. Grand received the ball near the 30-yard line, then was able to power past his defender and whip a cross into the box, for Captain Patrick Regan to score off of a header.
Kinley Poole scored the winning goal for Huron in the District Championships game in the 72nd minute, after a breakaway down the left flank led to him outpacing Pioneer’s defence to score on a tight angle. This marked the 2nd of the night for Poole, who led Huron’s attack to defeat Pioneer 2-1 at home.
“It was a hard-fought game. It’s very tough to play the cross-town rivals,” said Luis Gomez Dominguez, the coach of Huron soccer. “We worked hard, we stayed united. It was a well-deserved result for us.”
Huron continues their journey to the state playoffs after their win over Pioneer. They are set to play University of Detroit Jesuit High School on Oct. 21 in their first game of the State Championships.
“We faced them a few weeks ago. They are a tough opponent,” said Luis Gomez Dominguez, the coach of Huron soccer. “We came away with a one-to-zero win, but in the playoffs, anything can happen.”
Even though the journey ends here for Pioneer, they were able to take a lot of positives from the game and their season. Despite their exit, Grand remains hopeful for his team’s prospects in his senior year.
“We were really strong together. We worked really hard together. We put in a great effort.” Grand said. “Obviously, it wasn’t the result we wanted, but we really stayed as a warm and big community and friends. And next year, hopefully we’ll be able to get the title.”
