Trojans Outlast Union In Championship Shootout
By Mike Moguin
GTR Sports Writer
It took a hard-fought battle, but Jenks was eventually crowned state champion in soccer after a 2-1 shootout victory over rival Union in the Class 6A boys championship game on May 11 at the University of Tulsa soccer field.
Both teams had a goal late in the game, then endured two scoreless overtime periods before the game came down to penalty kicks.
Students from both schools lined up along their respective sides of the field, cheering their team on.
It took 11 rounds of penalty kicks before the game was decided. With the scored knotted 8-8 in the shootout, Union missed a shot, putting the Trojans in position to win the game on the foot of sophomore forward Christian Sosa. Sosa’s shot sailed past Redskin goalkeeper Logan Campbell and into the net for a 9-8 victory in penalty kicks. The exhausted Trojans commenced to celebrate.
“Right now, I’m so tired,” Sosa said. “I’m so happy. I’m happy for my teammates and I’m happy for everybody who’s here to win the championship,” he added.
The Trojans finished with an unbeaten 18-0 record.
Before Sosa’s winning score, Jenks senior goalkeeper A.J. Franklin deflected the ball that prevented a goal that would have put the Redskins ahead in penalty kicks.
“Yeah. I had a little nick on it. I was thinking we have a real chance of winning,” Franklin said. “I’m just so glad we did it for everyone, for the community, the school, that was just amazing. It was an awesome feeling.”
Jenks lost last year’s state title game to the Redskins, 4-0. That game served as a springboard for the Trojans.
“It definitely did,” Franklin said. “We were more determined, we worked harder, every single session was a whole lot harder just to get back here and win the championship.”
After going scoreless through nearly three quarters of the game, Union got on the board first on a goal with 10:32 left.
Three minutes later, Jenks scored. Erik Queros made a shot at the goal from 25 yards out, then Noah Gonzales made one from 10 yards. Union goalkeeper Logan Campbell made the save then lost control of the ball. That’s when sophomore midfielder Andres Quintero took advantage, scoring on the header to tie the game at 1-1.
“We had just been scored on, and I was just thinking, like, we can’t keep our heads down,” Quintero said. “Our coaches had talked about it. We as a team knew we couldn’t give up.
“Someone crossed it. Erik Quiroz crossed it, then someone headed it and the keeper let go of it and I was just there. I was just there and I finished it. I did what I had to,” Quintero added.
“It’s definitely enjoyable,” Franklin said. “We wanted to come back and win it for Jenks. We hadn’t won in 13 years (Jenks last won a boys’ soccer title in 2006). We wanted to win it for our school, for the program and for everyone who loves Jenks soccer.”
Trojan Quick Hits
• Senior Andie Williams won state in girls tennis for the third straight year. A signee of Quinnipiac, Williams beat Jenna Noel of Westmoore, 6-3, 6-0 in the Class 6A No. 1 singles final May 7 in Oklahoma City. She had lost to Noel early in the season, her lone defeat in high school. Williams finished her prep career with a 55-1 record. As a team, Jenks finished runner-up to Bixby, which edged them by one point.
• Caylor Hessen and G.G. Wilbourne captured state in boys tennis, winning the Class 6A No. 2 doubles championship with a 6-4, 6-2 decision against Bixby’s Blake Hopp and Kaden Smith on May 11 in Oklahoma City. The Trojans finished runner-up to Edmond North for the second straight year.
• The boys track and field team also took runner-up at the Class 6A meet on May 11 in Moore. Broken Arrow won the meet. Raymond Brass brought home two gold medals with wins in the 110 and 300-meter hurdles, respectively with times of 14.33 and 37.99.
• The freshman twin sister duo of Deborah and Avery Mazzel finished first and second respectively in the girls’ 1600-meter run, with a .36 second difference between the two. Deborah Mazzel won the gold medal with a time of 5:01.51. Avery Mazzel earned silver with a time of 5:01.87. Deborah Mazzel also won the 800-meter run with a time of 2:14.33. The Lady Trojans took third.
• The girls golf team was runner-up for the second consecutive year, finishing seven strokes behind Edmond North.
