Two upsets in boys soccer quarterfinals

Saturday’s quarterfinals of the boys state soccer tournament were jammed with close games, multiple overtimes and penalty kicks.

Volcano Vista and Rio Rancho both advanced in the Class 5A tournament, one with a goal late in the second OT, the other in PKs. Sandia was beaten in two overtimes late Saturday evening at the APS Complex by Hobbs.

And when the day was over, 5A was guaranteed of having a new state champion.

The top four seeds in the 4A bracket, and also the 1A-3A bracket, all were victorious on Saturday in the quarterfinals. The semifinals in all three divisions are Wednesday.

Class 5A

The only two upsets across the three classes on Saturday occurred in 5A, with No. 5 Hobbs and No. 7 Volcano Vista moving into Wednesday’s semifinals.

The day’s first game was a thriller, with Volcano Vista (15-6-1) scoring in the 98th minute, just before the whistle blew for PKs, to earn a 2-1 victory over second-seeded Rio Grande (15-3-3). The Hawks had won in PKs themselves in the first round against Atrisco Heritage.

Carr Mangus, a senior midfielder, could not be described as a prolific goal scorer for the Hawks, but it was his tally in the 98th minute that shipped Volcano Vista into the semifinals next week.

“Biggest goal of his career at Volcano Vista,” Hawks coach Billy Thiebaut said.

It was just the second goal of the season for Mangus, as he fired a shot high into the corner from about 8 yards out.

David Sherer had Volcano’s first goal.

“We feel very fortunate to be in the semis right now,” Thiebaut said.

The Hawks will visit No. 3 Rio Rancho, a district rival, at 6 p.m. Wednesday in the semifinals.

In the evening, Rio Rancho and No. 11 Centennial, the defending state champion, were deadlocked 1-1 through regulation and the two overtimes.

The Rams advanced with a 4-3 decision in the penalty kick shootout.

Goalkeeper Kenneth Graves had a huge save in the fourth round, and the Hawks’ fifth attempt banged off the post, ending the showdown.

“We have a lot of confidence in Kenneth. We really believe in him, and he’s a strong character and a strong individual,” Rams coach John Shepard said.

Parker Dunn of Rio Rancho (14-4-2) tied the game in the 65th minute. Centennial had the lead for a large chunk of the game, and Shepard said the Hawks (14-6-2) packed the box after taking the lead.

Hobbs (16-5-1) scored in the second overtime Saturday night at the cold APS Complex, ending a wild and exciting quarterfinal against the Matadors (14-5-2), and the Eagles advanced with a 5-4 victory.

Class 4A

No. 1 seed St. Pius was not threatened in the Sartans 6-2 home victory in the afternoon against ninth-seeded Chaparral.

St. Pius (17-1-3) will be home in the semifinals at 2 p.m. Wednesday against No. 4 seed Artesia (18-3), which defeated Los Alamos 2-1 in that top half of the bracket with a goal in the second overtime against the Hilltoppers.

For the Sartans, both Ethan Wright and Nico Reyes registered hat tricks against the Lobos.(11-10).

Wright scored in the first minute of the game, Reyes four minutes later. Wright added goals in the 10th and 75th minutes. Reyes scored again in the 49th and 60th minutes. St. Pius outshot Chaparral 27-11.

At the Academy, the defending state champion Chargers (13-5-3), the No. 3 seed, were 2-0 winners over district rival, No. 6 Hope Christian (12-9-1).

Cruz Tomori had a goal in the 10th minute for Academy, and Josh Ma, who assisted on the first goal, added a second goal for the Chargers in the 50th minute, with the assist going to Tomori.

In the last of the quarters, No. 2 seed Santa Teresa (18-3) ousted seventh-seeded Lovington 2-0.

The Desert Warriors will play host to Academy at 2:30 p.m. Wednesday.

Class 1A-3A

No. 1 Santa Fe Prep, No. 2 Sandia Prep, No. 3 New Mexico Military Institute (the two-time defending state champion) and No. 4 Bosque School won their quarterfinals games Saturday.

The Sundevils (16-4-1) rolled 5-0 over the Academy for Technology and the Classics out of Santa Fe. Ryan Williams and Akasha Khalsa each scored a pair of goals in the win for Sandia Prep. The Sundevils started fast, with two goals in the first 12 minutes.

At Bosque, the Bobcats (12-8-1) ousted No. 5 East Mountain and rode a first-half goal to a 1-0 victory.

The Blue Griffins (17-2) nipped city rival St. Michael’s 4-3, and NMMI (15-5) moved on in the draw with a 3-2 decision over Tierra Encantada.

Bosque visits Santa Fe Prep in the semis at 2:30 p.m. Wednesday. Sandia Prep will play host to NMMI, but no start time has yet been set.