A Relentless Army on the March, Blue Jays Wear Down the Crusaders, 1-0, to Advance to Soccer State Championship Match
Senior Bo Devenport Scores in 67th Minute and Blue Jays Hold On for Their Tenth Consecutive Shutout
The Blue Jays won, 1-0, on Devenport’s sliding chip shot goal in the 67th minute of the match. Winning goalie was junior Nick Tadros. The Jays will play in the state championship game next Saturday (February 23) at Tad Gormley Stadium against the winner of the Lafayette – St. Paul’s contest that will be decided tonight. The Jays and Crusaders played each other four times this season with Brother Martin winning the first two matches. But the Jays won the last two, including the most important match between the two rivals.
Jesuit shut down and shut out Brother Martin, 1-0, in a state semifinal soccer match on Saturday afternoon at John Ryan Stadium, setting the stage for a championship showdown game between the Blue Jays and St. Paul’s of Covington.
Senior mid-fielder Bo Devenport scored for the Jays in the 77th minute of the match and the Jesuit defense bulked up in the final 13 minutes to defeat a strong Crusader team.
The victory sends the Blue Jays to the LHSAA state championship match for the fifth consecutive year. It will be the third year in a row that Jesuit and St. Paul’s meet in the finals. Jesuit is the defending champion; The Wolves won two years ago. Since 1999, Jesuit has won a State Soccer Championship seven times and been runners-up on four occasions. In the 14-year span beginning in 1999, the Jays missed appearing in the state final match only twice.
Galleries
Soccer vs. Brother Martin, Playoffs Semifinals, Feb. 16, 2013
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The Blue Jays’ and Crusaders’ starting lineups are introduced to the crowd that gathered at John Ryan Stadium in blustery cold weather to watch a showdown.
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Junior Jacob Stansberry attempts to control the ball.
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Senior Mason Belle sees a sliding tackle coming his way.
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Senior Corey James has a free kick.
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Senior Joe Kepper leaps and heads the ball, which went in the goal, but was overturned by the referee. Kepper headed the ball on a kick from a teammate who was out of bounds.
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Junior Will McQueen jumps to head the ball on a corner kick.
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The Blue Jays had opportunities to score, but could not find the goal. Junior Evan Kramer has a chance to put the ball away, but just misses.
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Senior Bo Devenport finally gets the Blue Jays on the board in the 67th minute of the game. Devenport takes a pass and slide kicks a floater ...
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Devenport and the Crusaders watch the ball soar over the head of the Brother Martin goalie. It falls into the net untouched. A perfect lob for a big score.
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Devenport and the Blue Jays celebrate.
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The match is over 13 minutes later and the Blue Jay bench empties to congratulate Devenport (13).
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The Blue Jays will play the Wolves of St. Paul in the LHSAA Soccer Championship to be held Saturday, February 23 at Tad Gormley Stadium. The game is scheduled to begin approximately 7:30 p.m. Watch the Jesuit web site for further information.