Davis High won the 6A girls' soccer state championship over American Fork, exacting revenge on the team that beat the Darts just a year earlier in the 2019 final.
“We came back for revenge this time, I think,” Darts junior Aniston Haycock said. “We just weren’t going to lose.”
Haycock scored the game-winner off a corner kick that found its way to her after getting touched by a couple of her teammates. Her goal marked the end of the game due to the golden goal rule in extra time.
The Cavemen and Darts were scoreless in regulation, though American Fork had a couple of premium chances late in the second half. But the Davis defense stayed strong throughout and was able to hold a dynamic Cavemen attack in check.
Davis coach Soulivanh Phongsavath described the journey the Darts had to endure to win the title. Losing in the quarterfinals, then the semifinals, then the finals in the previous three years prepared them for this moment.
“We just took step by step by step until eventually we were able to pull it off,” Phongsavath said.
Phongsavath said last season’s loss to American Fork was due to a lack of confidence and a “we’re just happy to be here” mindset. But this season, he said, the Darts were on a mission.
“We were not going to settle for anything but the state championship,” Phongsavath said.
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