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Playoff soccer roundup: Celina’s Taylor Zdrojewski breaks state record for goals in a season; Allen boys win in a shootout

Plus, state No. 1-ranked Highland Park girls win in shootout.

Note: This story has been updated since it was originally published to reflect that Celina’s Taylor Zdrojewski was credited with seven goals in Tuesday’s game, not six, as originally reported.

FORNEY — Taylor Zdrojewski was staring down her easiest shot of the night. The junior forward from Celina had just earned a free kick from 20 yards out and was watching as the Bullard defenders congregated in the middle of the box.

Zdrojewski already knew what she wanted to do with the shot. The four-star recruit was just waiting to see how Bullard goalie Emily Clark would situate. And as soon as Clark set up low and away, Zdrojewski softly poked the ball into the upper crest of the net for her fifth goal of the evening.

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That sequence in the 74th minute gave Zdrojewski the state record for most goals scored in a season, and Celina went on to beat Bullard 7-0 in a Class 4A Region II semifinal.

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Zdrojewski scored all seven goals in the game, giving her 112 goals for the season. The state record had been 109 goals by Esmeralda Gonzales of Fort Worth South Hills in 2016, according to the National Federation of State High School Associations record book.

“There was so much adrenaline going into that shot,” Zdrojewski said. “I didn’t think I was going to get [the record] tonight. I’d missed so many shots before, so I took it as just another shot.”

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“At the start of this season I wasn’t thinking about the record. By the middle of the year, I saw the track I was on and said, ‘Let’s get to 100.’ Then, I said ‘Let’s get the record.’ "

As a team, Celina (23-1-1) cruised to a regional final in a game that amounted to a stalemate-turned-offensive flurry.

After scoring just one goal in the first half — tied for a season-low — Celina posted six goals in the second. It outshot Bullard 23-2 and edged the visitors 11-1 in shots on goal.

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“I think we just were going against the wind,” Celina coach Steve Nichols said. “We had some poor touches. It took us awhile to get going, but it opened up in the second half.”

Celina stayed on its pace of scoring over four goals a game. But, Tuesday, the attention was on Zdrojewski.

“This is her record. The team’s record,” Nichols said. “Everyone wanted to see her get it. She finally did it.”

Kevin Reynolds

In other girls games:

Highland Park 2, Frisco Memorial 1 (PK): When her team is facing difficult times, Highland Park coach Jackie Hlavaty passes along being patient over panicking. That patience paid off on Tuesday, personified by Parker Hart, and because of it the Lady Scots’ season is still perfect.

Highland Park eventually needed a shootout to beat Frisco Memorial in a Class 5A Region II semifinal at Buddy Echols Field. Highland Park took the shootout 4-2 after the score was tied 1-1 through regulation and overtime.

Highland Park will play Frisco Wakeland in the regional final at 7 p.m. Friday at Mesquite Memorial Stadium. Wakeland was a 6-0 winner over Forney on Tuesday.

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While the shootout won the game, the most important point of the game happened in the second half — after Highland Park trailed the majority of the contest. Highland Park tied the score at 1-all with 18:56 remaining when Hart converted a 15-yard shot from the left side, set up by passes from Taylor Matise and Hattie Patterson, who returned to the lineup after missing two games after being injured in a bi-district win over Red Oak on March 26.

“The play was on the opposite side. Hattie helped me get wide open and I had the angle to shoot. I’m glad she was back,” Hart said. “Memorial’s back line was playing well and was well-connected. They had a good transition game.

“I kept telling my teammates keep going. Keep fighting and don’t give up. When we told each other that it helped.”

In the shootout, Highland Park was 4-for-4 on its kicks with Quinn Cornog, EmJ Cox, Olivia Walker and Kylie Bell converting. Presley Ancheta and Ava Colberg made their penalty kicks for Memorial.

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Highland Park, the top-ranked team in the Texas Girls Coaches Association Class 5A girls state poll, stayed undefeated at 22-0. Highland Park advanced to a regional final for the ninth consecutive postseason.

Memorial (18-3-3), ranked No. 9 in the area, ended its season going 3-1 in the playoffs in its first postseason appearance.

Memorial took a 1-0 lead just 55 seconds into the game as Brooke Bollinger drove from the left side to set up Colberg with the scoring shot from 12 yards out. It was the first time Highland Park had allowed a goal in the postseason and snapped a scoreless streak of six games for the HP defense.

That was Memorial’s only shot on goal in the first half, as a strong southern wind made setting up offenses challenging for both teams, limiting Highland Park to three shots on goal. Highland Park had a 10-3 edge in shots on goal for the game.

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“This game had its challenges with elements of the wind, and that was a little frustrating, but we’ve played in games where we had to be patient like today,” said Hlavaty, who is in her first season as Highland Park’s head coach. “I thought it was just a matter of time, the whole entire time. I’m not ever worried. When we play our game we’re not worried about it.”

Highland Park had two quality scoring opportunities on two free kicks by Cornog in the first half. Her 35-yard blast in the third minute was stopped by Memorial goalie Olivia Ramey. The other free kick was from 30 yards in the 17th minute, but it carried over crossbar.

Highland Park had another quality scoring chance after Hart’s goal, but a 32-yard shot by Cornog was denied by a diving save from Ramey, who finished with nine saves.

Memorial had a chance to score on a corner kick in the closing seconds of regulation, but Highland Park goalie Claire Binns grabbed the pass in traffic to prevent a shot. Memorial appeared to have the best scoring chance in overtime, but a header by McKenna Kelley off a corner kick in the 82nd minute went just right.

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Rick Kretzschmar

Flower Mound Marcus 3, Keller 0: Nina Mazzola and Piper Hemperly each had a goal and an assist as Flower Mound Marcus won a 6A Region I semifinal and set up an all-Lewisville ISD regional final against rival Flower Mound.

Bella Campos gave Marcus a 1-0 lead, scoring off a throw-in by Northwestern State signee Caroline Hilliard. Mazzola’s goal made it 2-0, with Hemperly picking up the assist, and that was the score at halftime.

Marcus (20-3-5) extended the lead to 3-0 in the second half, as Mazzola fed Hemperly for the goal.

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Flower Mound 5, Northwest Eaton 0: The state’s sixth-ranked 6A team got two goals from Riley Baker and a shutout from Arkansas signee Peyton Whipple to win a 6A Region I semifinal.

Sydney Becerra, Kendal Nelson and Rory Schank added goals for Flower Mound (21-1-2).

Mansfield Lake Ridge 4, Tomball Memorial 2: Lake Ridge advanced to the 6A Region II final and will play The Woodlands, which beat Mansfield in a shootout.

Grapevine 3, Abilene Wylie 1: Two goals from Kasten Merrill and one by Theresa McCullough powered Grapevine to victory in a 5A Region I semifinal. Grapevine (23-1-3) advanced to play Amarillo, a 3-0 winner over Burleson Centennial.

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Midlothian Heritage 2, Stephenville 1: Logan Berumen’s goal with about 12 minutes remaining broke a 1-1 tie and lifted Midlothian Heritage to victory in a 4A Region I semifinal.

The game was scoreless at halftime, and Brynn Pollock scored Heritage’s first goal of the game. Heritage, ranked No. 6 in the state, advanced to play Argyle.

Stephenville won the 4A state championship in 2017 and 2019, Midlothian Heritage won it in 2018, and the playoffs were canceled last year due to the pandemic.

Boys

Allen 2, Keller 1 (PK): Allen was perfect in the shootout, outscoring Keller 5-3 on penalty kicks after the Class 6A Region I semifinal was tied 1-1 through regulation and overtime. Allen (19-4-1) advanced to face El Paso Eastlake in the regional final later this week.

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Ayden Mendoza, Bryan Vallejo, Sam Presser, David Sajdak and Matthew Sanchez scored for Allen in the shootout, with the kick from Sanchez being the match winner. Keller (17-3) got shootout goals from Andrew Sanchez, Paolo Camilol and Ian Wiechers but also missed wide on try that gave Allen the lead.

Keller controlled most of the opening 15 minutes of the match, using its speed and quick passes to generate four quality shots on goal in that span. That included a pair of tries from Tyler McCollum and Conner Lisenbee from inside 10 yards, but Allen’s defense turned away both attempts.

Keller’s continued pressure eventually broke through at the 26th minute of the opening half, as Jake Musgrave was fouled in the penalty box for a penalty kick. Lisenbee took the try for Keller and scored for a 1-0 lead.

Allen would respond with increased offensive pressure over the next 10 minutes, as Sanchez and Presser each had solid tries on goal after the Keller score. And it was Presser that finally broke through in the 29th minute, blasting a shot in from 25 yards to tie the match at 1-1.

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The score stayed tied into the second half, with Allen controlling the tempo for most of that half. That included four corner kick tries and two quality scoring chances from Sanchez. However, Keller’s defense and goalie Evan Bridiesca held tough with four second half saves to force overtime.

In the two overtimes, both teams kept most of the action to the midfield and limited scoring tries to push the match into the decisive shootout.

Robert Thomas

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Rockwall-Heath 3, Klein Forest 0: Donovan Faletto scored a pair of goals and Chris Rodriguez added one in Heath’s win in a 6A Region II semifinal. Next up for Heath (13-8-3) is a matchup with Cypress Bridgeland, which beat Sachse in a shootout.

The regional final will be Friday at Waco ISD Stadium, with the time still to be determined.

Frisco Wakeland 2, Nacogdoches 0: Kyle Davis and Brennan Bezdek scored the goals as Wakeland won a 5A Region II semifinal. Wakeland’s regional final opponent will be Longview, which beat Frisco 3-2.

Colleyville Heritage 3, Amarillo Palo Duro 1: Aidan Shimmick, Cade Ryan and Mac Oliver scored goals for Colleyville Heritage as it won a 5A Region I semifinal.

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Heritage (19-4-2) advanced to play El Paso Del Valle in the regional final at 11 a.m. Friday at Grand Communications Stadium in Midland. Daniel Osorio, Rami Helou and Nate Jackson had assists for Heritage.

El Paso Eastlake 4, Jesuit 1: Eastlake dominated the Class 6A Region I semifinal, owning a 28-12 advantage in shots and a 15-6 edge in shots on goal.

Eastlake (21-1) is headed to a regional final for the first time since 2016, when it was a 5A state semifinalist. Jesuit (17-4-3) made its deepest playoff run since it won the 6A state championship in 2017.

Eastlake led 1-0 at halftime thanks to a goal by Gio Mora, then extended its lead to 3-0 in the second half on goals by Gustavo Chino Muela and Jordan Widner. Benton Bacile scored the only goal for Jesuit off an assist by Ryan Shea in the 66th minute to make it 3-1, but Mora scored his second goal of the game in the 77th minute to complete the scoring.

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Jesuit goalkeeper Cole Hines made 11 saves. Eastlake has outscored its postseason opponents 19-4 and has scored at least four goals in all four playoff games. Eastlake is averaging 5.5 goals per game for the season.

El Paso Del Valle 4, Grapevine 1: Del Valle scored three unanswered goals in the second half after the Class 5A Region I semifinal was tied 1-1 at halftime. Grant Isbell scored the only goal for Grapevine (18-9-2), which was in the regional semifinals for the first time since 2016.

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