CONWAY -- Springdale High senior midfielder Nelson Barroso stood 25 yards away from Conway goaltender Christopher Walters during Friday afternoon's Class 6A boys soccer quarterfinal at Conway High School.
Walters had stopped just about everything the Bulldogs had shot in his direction, and Barroso said he knew he wasn't going to overpower Walters, nor did he want to after his team was awarded a free kick.
"Pure accuracy," Barroso said of his game-winning goal midway through the second overtime. "I didn't try to hit it too hard. Just tried to hit it where it needed to be."
Barroso's straight-line shot clipped the head of a player in front of the goal and found its way inside the top of the goal post to give Springdale a hard-earned 2-1 victory and spot in today's semifinal against Bentonville.
Springdale (16-2) went through the 6A-West undefeated at 14-0 and is ranked 16th in the nation by MaxPreps, but Conway (11-10-2) never blinked behind the play of Walters, who stopped countless Springdale attacks by aggressively pursuing any ball within his grasp.
Conway scored the game's first goal in the 30th minute on Soloman Chaffin's no-look, back-of-the foot kick, but Springdale tied the game less than two minutes later on a goal by Irvin Sotero.
Springdale coach D.J. Beeler said he knew the Bulldogs were in for a tough fight.
"I understand that the state tournament is a different animal," Beeler said. "You can tell the kids that until you're blue in the face. Every game's a challenge."
Beeler said Conway's Walters played as well as a goalie can play.
"He had an amazing game," Beeler said. "We are very grateful to be able to keep playing. It's not supposed to be easy."
Conway coach Matt Page said the Wampus Cats were not deterred by the reputation of the top seed from the 6A-West and its national ranking.
"We didn't think we were the underdog," Page said. "We knew we could hang with them. As long as we played here, we knew we'd be fine. They're a great team that's ranked really high. We did everything we could."
BRYANT 2, VAN BUREN 1
Brandon Delgadillo scored on a 25-yard left-footed strike in the 38th minute to give Bryant (15-2-2) the lead before halftime against Van Buren (12-10), and the Hornets held on to advance to today's noon semifinal against Rogers.
Bryant, the No. 1 seed from the 6A-Central, scored in the fourth minute on Grant Jacuzzi's 18-yard shot, but Van Buren countered with a goal from Isaac Delafuente in the 28th minute to tie the game at 1-1.
Delgadillo said the game-winning goal was instinct.
"I didn't think about it, I just hit it," Delgadillo said. "That's probably the longest shot I've taken. I felt it coming. As I got the ball, I felt it go in."
Delgadillo said Bryant is unfazed by the fact that it is the only team remaining from the 6A-Central in today's semifinals.
"No one believed in us, and we're here to make history," he said. "It's our first time going into the semifinals, and we're here to win it all."
ROGERS HIGH 1, BENTONVILLE WEST 0 (OT)
Senior striker Maynor Sandoval scored the game-winner with 7:03 to play in overtime to lift Rogers (15-5-2) over 6A-West rival Bentonville West (11-10).
Rogers executed a throw-in and a crossing pass deep in Bentonville West territory to set up Sandoval, who broke down the middle from his midfield position, gained control and fired it past the Bentonville West goaltender to secure the victory.
BENTONVILLE 4, FS NORTHSIDE 3
Rodrigo Mouron scored two goals, the last of which turned out to be the game-winner, and Bentonville (14-6) rallied to defeat defending state champion Fort Smith Northside.
Mouron scored both of his goals on penalty kicks, the second one coming in the 21st minute of the second half.
Thomas Borenholtz and Elliott Nimrod also scored for Bentonville.
Northside (15-6) scored in the first two minutes of the first half on Rafael Barroso's shot from the right wing. Ricky Iturriaga and Luis Paredes also scored for the Grizzlies, who led 1-0, 2-1 and 3-2 before allowing the final two goals.
CLASS 5A
Siloam Springs 2, HS Lakeside 1 (OT)
Eli Jackson came up big for Siloam Springs once again Friday.
Jackson scored the game-winning goal with 6 minutes, 52 seconds left in extra time as the Panthers beat the defending 5A state champions.
Siloam Springs advances to today's noon semifinal against Mountain Home, which defeated Maumelle 1-0 in another quarterfinal.
After scoring both of the Panthers' goals on Thursday in a 2-1 opening round win against Little Rock Hall, Jackson took a pass from Julio Maldonado in the extra time period. The ball got stuck in the mud so Jackson took a touch with his right foot, his defender slipped and he fired a rocket upper 90 into the Rams' goal. It was his team-leading 24th goal of the season.
"Getting that shot was just huge," Jackson said. "Just getting that one opportunity. (Assistant) coach (James) Pollard kept telling me the entire game, you'll get at least one good opportunity and if you do finish it."
It was a big shot for the Panthers (17-5), who is the No. 3 seed from the 5A-West.
Reserve forward Miguel Granados gave the Panthers a 1-0 lead with 5:16 left in the first half.
CLASS 4A
Harrison 1, Pulaski Academy 0
Spencer Bailey provided the only scoring as Harrison slipped past Pulaski Academy.
Bailey scored on a penalty kick with 35 minutes remaining for the Goblins (19-4-1), who will play Batesville in a battle of top seeds at Batesville Southside High School.
Sports on 05/11/2019