Boys Soccer: Tigers fall in section final

Senior captain Blake Smith (photo by Jim Lindquist)

Owatonna successfully defended its Section 1AA title with a 2-0 win over the Tigers Tuesday night on rain-soaked Lincoln Field in Owatonna.

The Huskies scored a goal toward the end of in each half, both on rebound shots from close range, to advance to next week's state Class AA tournament.

The loss ended another winning season for the Tigers who finished the 2013 campaign with  an overall record of 8-5-5 and advanced to the section title game for the first time in program history.

Despite coming out on the short end of the score at Owatonna, coach Julian Buss couldn't say enough about his team's play in its first-ever section final.

"We played some of the best soccer I have ever seen from Farmington," he said. "We played like a section finalist."

Buss singled out several players for their efforts in the final game of the 2013 season:

Senior captain Jared Wolt (photo by Jim Lindquist)

Matt Dubois: "Matt played a physical and intelligent game at sweeper. He definitely kept Owatonna's chances down.

Blake Smith: "He made some great runs and worked the middle of the field."

Robin DeCastro: "Robin was right there with Blake winning 50-50 balls and moving the ball upfield."

Hunter Meyers: "He led the team with a consistent high level of play. He was a true leder by example and ability."

Senior captain Eric Stoeckman (photo by Jim Lindquist)

Jared Wolt: "He fought and fought for a goal. Even though he was double and triple-teamed, he got off nine shots and four of them were on goal."

Eric Stoeckman: "Eric got the job done on defense like he does every game."

Goalie Jake Agnew: "Jake was ready for Owatonna. The two goals they got were attributed to their forwards getting open looks and finishing in loose ball situations."'

Buss said Ryan Parco, Rafael Romero, Jeffrey Gutierrez and Caleb Gochenour also played well in the title game.

"Owatonna was a good opponent," Buss concluded. "They earned the win."

Senior captain Hunter Meyers (photo by Jim Lindquist)