Marist boys soccer team upsets Stayton, 2-1, to claim state championship

Marist Catholic’s improbable run is complete. 

The Spartans are OSAA boys soccer state champions for the first time since 1997 after a stunning 2-1 upset win over No. 1 Stayton in the 4A final Saturday, Nov. 14.

Two more upset wins, over No. 7 Cascade and No. 2 Valley Catholic, delivered the Spartans to the semifinal last Tuesday. There, hosting No. 14 Newport in a battle of Cinderellas, the No. 10 Spartans rode Hudson Cheeseman’s two-assist, one-goal performance to their first championship game berth since 2001.

Then, Saturday morning in Hillsboro, one more surprise performance won them their title. Caleb Hirons’ eighth-minute goal put the Spartans (14-3-2) ahead of Stayton (16-2-0) early, and sophomore goalkeeper Nelson Holland-Bak made 10 saves — including seven in the second half — to preserve the scoreline for the next 72 minutes until Marist’s Evan Coffman scored late to seal the victory and Marist lifted its trophy.

Marist opened the scoring well against the run of play in the eighth minute when a long cross-field ball found Isaac Atkerson, who looped it back to Hirons waiting at the back post. Hirons’ header looped over the Stayton goalkeeper’s head and into the back of the net — sending Marist’s team sprinting to the crowd in celebration.

That streak-breaking goal — Stayton hadn’t conceded a goal (much less lost) since an 8-1 win Oct. 27 — didn’t break the dam, but it didn’t spark the Eagles’ attack, either. 

On the other end, the Spartans’ had held off the Stayton advance and conceded just one good half-chance to that point on a through ball which goalkeeper Nelson Holland-Bak chested away, and continued to stonewall the one-loss Eagles throughout the first half. 

One glancing header and a shot over the bar from the top of the box was all Stayton could muster — but Marist remained sealed in its own half and didn’t have another shot in the period.

That was good enough, though. Holland-Bak’s three saves in the first half kept the Spartans in the lead, and a stout back four hoofed away any other chances.

Stayton’s early second-half chances were limited to perimeter tries, and a 30-yard effort put on frame for Holland-Bak to make a save was the best the Eagles could do until forward Josiah Dessieux turned on a pass inside the box in the 58th minute and fired at Holland-Bak on a first-time shot. He could only find the sophomore’s chest, and the clean sheet remained.

The Spartans, meanwhile, got their second shot with 13 minutes left, a long effort from the right side of the box which drifted low and wide, to cap an extended a multi-minute attacking surge. 

More chances flooded the Marist goal as the clock ticked down, including a goal-line clearance  which became a Stayton shot steamed over the bar and multiple saves from Holland-Bak. A late shot rattled off the football crossbar inches above the goal.

That, though, was as close as Stayton would come as the Spartans’ defensive masterclass stymied the state’s top-ranked 4A team and crowned No. 10 Marist the champions.  and crowned the Cinderellas. Coffman sealed the Spartans’ win in the 80th minute, when a long free kick was mistakenly cleared and he picked the centerback’s pocket before tucking the ball in the bottom left corner.

Holland-Bak’s shutout was finally broken in the waning seconds by Dessieux with 51 seconds left, but it didn’t matter when the Spartans salted away the final minute. Marist is the state champion, for the first time in 29 years.

Later Saturday today, Marist’s No. 4-seeded girls team plays for its own state title against No. 2 Scappoose at 1 p.m., where it will attempt to become the first team in school history to win three consecutive state titles and complete the first boys-girls state title sweep. At halftime, the Marist girls led, 2-0.