Brophy Prep landed the No. 1 seed for the second consecutive year and the Broncos desire a better run at the 2017 6A state soccer tournament.
Brophy was upended by No. 16 seed Desert Vista last year in the opening round. Desert Vista went on to a strong showing reaching the semis before bowing out. As this year's pairings played out, Brophy opens at home again against the No. 16 seed -- Desert Vista.
The Broncos are by no means a shoo-in to take the big trophy with the likes of No. 2 Gilbert, No. 4 Corona del Sol and No. 6 and defending champ Hamilton lurking. But a habit of reaching the finals the last eight seasons trumps last year's early exit.
The tournament's first round is Tuesday Jan. 31 followed by quarterfinals Saturday Feb. 4, semifinals Tuesday Feb. 7 and title match on Saturday Feb. 11. The first two rounds are at the site of the high seed and semis and final are at Campo Verde High School.
First-round matchups are: #16 Desert Vista at #1 Brophy; #9 Tucson at #8 Sandra Day O'Connor; #12 Chandler at #5 Tolleson; #13 Highland at #4 Corona del Sol; #14 Pinnacle at #3 Cibola; #11 Central at #6 Hamilton; #10 Mesa at #7 San Luis and #15 North at #2 Gilbert.
Here's a peek at the top-10 seeds and players for the final two weeks of competition:
No. 1 seed Brophy Prep -- First-year head coach Paul Allen, on staff for nearly a decade with the Broncos (14-4-1), points to his team's ability to play multiple formations and speed of play as a major strengths. Brophy has reached the state finals five of the last eight years. Top players are sophomore center back Deric Hall, an all-tournament selection at both invites Brophy competed in. Junior forward Carter Clemmensen has 31 goals to pace the attack and senior keeper Wills Rice uses his size and athleticism to advantage.
No 2 seed Gilbert -- The Tigers (16-3-1) fell a few minutes short of their first outright title in the sport last year and have 15 lettermen and nine seniors intent on rectifying that. Gilbert's attack is led by senior twins Danny and Robby Baca. Senior defender Michael Johannson is one of the best in the state and seniors Zach Hellmann and Kevin Olivarez are solid in midfield. Junior Noah Rivera has recorded six shutouts in goal.
No. 3 seed Cibola -- The Raiders (15-1-1) were a D-II semifinalist last season and have dominated play mostly against their Yuma brethren. Cibola is led by football and fotbal standout Gabriel Claudio, who has 19 goals and 12 assists. Enrique Zamora and Julian Nunez are strong at midfield and in the back, respectively.
No. 4 seed Corona del Sol -- The Aztecs (17-2-1) advanced to the quarterfinals last year, losing to Hamilton in a shootout. A senior-driven team with many players together on varsity three of four seasons, they are led by senior midfielder Ryan Flood (22 goals). Senior captain and top defender Tanner Pile has 6 goals as does junior midfielder Preston Grayson. Losses are to Gilbert and Hamilton. Corona played its first-round opponent -- Highland -- to a 2-2 tie earlier this month.
No. 5 seed Tolleson -- The Wolverines (17-0-0) made it to the D-I quarterfinals last year -- a 5-1 loss to Gilbert. They've displayed plenty of firepower with 102 goals and five players with double-digit goal totals -- Luis Uribe (19), Cesar Martinez (18), Armando Valdez (16), Emmanuel Rayas (14) and Kelvin Guerrero (11). Alan Cazares has been a rock in goal, allowing 8 goals for the season and posting six shutouts. They know their strength of schedule is weak and the quality of opponent going forward will improve markedly. They are ready for the challenge with Chandler first up.
No. 6 seed Hamilton -- The Huskies (15-3-1) are on a roll after a tough week in mid-January that saw them lose to Brophy and tie Chandler. They've won four in a row since all via shutout. They split two matches with Corona del Sol -- a power-ranking loss and win in the title match of the Arizona Showcase. Hamilton has been to five final since 2010 and won two of them. The Huskies are led by seniors Josh Drack, Beto Vidana and Blake Lynch.
No. 7 seed San Luis -- The Sidewinders (8-3-2) have shared the spotlight in recent years with Kofa as the top soccer programs in Yuma. They went out in the quarterfinals of the D-II tourney last year, but are hosting Mesa High in their jump to D-I (6A) in the opening round. They are led by senior Carlos Carrion (9 goals) and junior George Kobel (7 goals).
No. 8 seed Sandra Day O'Connor -- The Eagles (9-4-2) shared the Desert Valley Region title with Pinnacle, but got the automatic berth to state and ended up in the top 8. Coach Harry Demos club has battled Brophy, Gilbert and Corona, but came away with shutout losses in each. O'Connor opens at home vs. Tucson High. The Eagles, two years removed from a big-school title match, are led by forwards Trey Ratkovich (12 goals) and Will Harris (10 goals).
No. 9 seed Tucson -- The Badgers (19-4) are a virtual unknown to schools in the Valley with only two of their 23 matches against teams from the Valley. Tucson lost, but played Hamilton tough in a 1-0 defeat and topped Desert Mountain in a play-in game 2-0. The only other seeded team they faced was Cibola, a 3-1 loss last week. Tucson's scoring punch revolves around sophomore Javier Martinez (19 goals) and senior Luis Mejia (10 goals).
No. 10 seed Mesa High -- The Jackrabbits dominated the East Valley Region and finished the season strong with seven wins in their final eight matches. That includd an overtime win over Chandler in their regular season-finale. Mesa relies on junior forward Moises Durazo (9 goals and 10 assists), senior forward Edwin Garcia (8 goals, 10 assists) and top defender and captain Brian Gomez. Mesa's defense has allowed less than a goal per match over its last nine.
