This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2014, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Normally, a fourth-place team would not be expected to come close to a first-place club in the Utah boys' high school soccer tournament.
But St. Joseph did just that earlier this week, knocking first-place Manti out of the tournament on the Templars' home field in a 2-2 game decided by a 4-1 shootout in favor of the Jays.
Considering the state tournament games between these two teams the past two years, however, St. Joseph's victory should not have been a major surprise. Their tournament games have been memorable.
In 2012, Manti defeated St. Joseph 2-1 in the Class 2A championship game. Last year, the Templars knocked the Jays out of the tournament in a semifinal shootout.
St. Joseph always is around come state tournament time. The Ogden-based Catholic school lost in the 2011 state championship game. The Jays will have to advance on the road this year, though. Their next game is Saturday at 1 p.m. at Delta.
— Tom Wharton