THUNDER BAY – A slow start did little to stop the St. Ignatius Falcons from capturing their fifth straight high school boys’ soccer championship.
It was the strong finish that mattered most in the end.
The Falcons scored three times in a five-minute span in the second half, and went on to defeat the St. Patrick Fighting Saints 4-0 at Fort William Stadium, landing a spot at next week’s OFSAA ‘AAA’ boys championship in Windsor, Ont.
Alexamdro Iossa scored twice and added an assist on the third goal, blowing open a 1-0 lead, stunning a Saints team that was simply looking for an opening to try to find the equalizer until the onslaught began.
“It feels good,” Iossa said. “We’ve been to OFSAA a couple of times now and we’ve never won. It feels good, but it’s only half the battle. Winning OFSAA will be much better.”
It was all about making the most of his opportunities, Iossa added.
“As a striker, you’ve got to be in the right place at the right time and you take any goal you can get,” he said, noting they got a little inspiration from within at the 40-minute break.
“The halftime speech by the coaches were really motivating. It’s just great to have a nice coaching staff.”
Neither side gave up much ground in the opening half, but it was the Falcons who struck first, Matteo Bosch taking a cross from fellow Thunder Bay Chill teammate Levi Swearengen and drove it past Saints keeper Jacob Domete, the goal coming in the 37th minute.
Coming out of the break and nursing a 1-0 lead, St. Ignatius caught a break in the 58th, when a long pass bounced off a St. Patrick defender and at the feet of Iossa, who made a quick move on Domete and blasted it home for a 2-0 lead.
Two minutes later Iossa and Leon Adil charged down the field, with only a Saints defender and goalkeeper between them and the net. Adil flipped the ball over to Iossa and just like that, the Falcons were up 3-0.
Another two minutes later Iossa made a crossing pass of his own and Daniel Voca headed it into the St. Patrick net, ending whatever slim hope the Saints had about making an improbable comeback.
“It’s my last year at St. Ignatius, so to get it done in the final means a lot to me and to all the other graduating players,” said Bosch, less than 24 hours before the Chill kick off their 2024 regular season at home against Bavarian United.
The difference on Thursday night?
“Probably just putting the ball in dangerous areas and then finding the ball and putting it into the back of the net.”
The Falcons finished 5-0-0 in the regular season, allowing just three goals along the way. The Saints were the third seed entering the SSSAA playoffs, with a 2-2-1 record.
