St. Paul Academy further solidified its tag as a perennial Minnesota soccer power by carving out a piece of history.
The top-seeded Spartans recorded a 2-0 victory over No. 3 Rochester Lourdes to capture the Class A championship in the Minnesota State High School League’s Boys Soccer State Tournament on Friday, Nov. 1 at U.S. Bank Stadium in downtown St. Paul.
Senior midfielder Ezra Straub scored two dazzling goals, tallies less than a minute apart early in the second half, to send the Spartans (17-3-1) to their third consecutive Class A crown. St. Paul Academy is the first boys soccer program since Edina more than two decades ago to win three consecutive titles. Edina did so with Class AA championships in 1999, 2000 and 2001, respectively.
The Spartans had earlier championships during the single-class era in 1986, 1987, 1991 and 1994 when they were coached by the legendary Buzz Lagos, who now serves as an assistant coach with the Spartans.
Straub, a lightning-fast player who plays with flair, opened the scoring in the 48th minute. After a flurry of activity in front of the Rochester Lourdes goal, Straub’s quickness paved the way for a toe-tap shot that sent the ball rolling into the goal.
His second goal came off a free kick from 26 yards, a shot that sailed over the Rochester Lourdes defensive wall before curling around the left post.
Rochester Lourdes (17-4-1), meanwhile, was unable to solve St. Paul Academy’s defense that packed the zone and made things miserable for the Eagles. The victory was also a measure of revenge for St. Paul Academy, which suffered a 3-1 setback to Rochester Lourdes on Sept. 14.
St. Paul Academy ended the season on a 13-game winning streak and surrendered just four goals in that spree.
During the awards ceremony, Straub and his teammates displayed an elite level of sportsmanship toward Rochester Lourdes. While posing for the All-Tournament Team portrait, the Spartans that were selected made sure they were standing next to a Rochester Lourdes player. They also put their arms around their shoulders in a sign of unity through athletics.
