From the worst areas in the state to the most prestigious areas in the state, Maeser Prep's football championship conquest has been completed.
Maeser Prep dominated the U.S. Heritage in the second half of Saturday’s 2A state championship, scoring twice to win 3-1 as Lindon Charter School won its first state championship in school history in any sport.
Coach Dustin Simmons, who has been the school’s football coach since opening up, said explicitly that his team’s game and practice are the worst in the state.
"Our field is horrible. It's trash, I can say that because I installed the field with another student," Simmons said of the Eagle Scout project for students who installed SOD 15 years ago.
"So it's a dream to be able to play with this boy's environment in a place like this. They saw it on TV," Simmons said.
The first game in the United States is just part of the dream. The bigger dream is to win the state championship. Maeser Prep lost to Juggernaut St. Joseph in the final two years ago, and a year ago it lost to American Legacy in the semifinals.
The losses in the semifinal paved the way for Saturday’s performance as players weren’t caught in the possible situation throughout the year. They focus on simple daily tasks.
"This year, we really focused on the next game. We didn't trip over our feet when we looked at the stars. That's the next game, focusing on our mission," said Simmons, who said his players wrote reminders on their wrists about the type of sports to keep them focused.
The biggest focus to reach the finals was Corrall American Heritage Speedy forward Cael Tillman, who finished the season with 29 goals.
"We pulled back a little back and told our midfielders to press their midfield very hard so they don't have time to play and take him away," Simmons said.
He thought his players were excellent in 80 minutes, but Tilman still managed to score the start of the game with a kick from Alex Bay.
It was the dream start of the American Legacy, which aims to avenge the penalty shootout for Rowland Hall in last year's 2A Championship.
In an earlier meeting between these teams, the U.S. Heritage score was the first to score, even leading 2-0, but Maeser Prep rushed back 4-2. In a similar way, Patriots leadership did not last long Saturday.
In the 27th minute, freshman Denzel Sono-Koree hit Sam Werner's rebound goal with a 1-1 goal. Coach Simmons is happy to see his team scoring is a big goal for the type of accumulation they have been working on throughout the season. He joked that Sono-Koree missed more than a dozen shots.
Accumulation involves following the line, cutting it down, and perfect goals appear at that moment.
"But today, today is important, he got it, just brought us back to the game," Simmons said.
As the game level ended from halftime, Maeser Prep was on the front foot for most of the second half, eventually moving forward with his Super Sub goal in the 60th minute.
Jaden Gardner received the ball, his back was about six yards away from six yards before quickly turning around and slipped off the American Heritage diving goalkeeper with a 2-1 lead finger tip.
"He's our super submarine. He won the game against Watford in the quarterfinals and had five minutes left in the busy game," said his senior Simmons.
"He didn't have many minutes, I mean I think he had about 15 minutes today, but when he got in, he was deadly."
In the 77th minute, Maeser Prep reached insurance goals with his fourth goal of the season with a great solo effect. After taking the ball away from the American Legacy player who stumbled on the ball, Johnson dribbled 70 yards on several final ditch guards and beaten home with a 3-1 victory.
"This is the first UHSAA title our school has ever won. We are only 17 years old. I think all the students are here today." "It's amazing."