Bentonville West avenges last year’s loss in final

BENTON -- Bentonville West Coach Kerry Castillo set tryouts for 48 hours after the Wolverines' 3-0 loss to Fayetteville in last season's state final. He was ready to turn the page. But he wasn't going to let the memory of the defeat fade. "Every single day," Castillo said when asked how often he reminded his team. "We told the incoming freshmen that the only goal we had this year was to get back to this day and this spot. "If it was against the same team, so be it." In a rematch with the Bulldogs, Bentonville West edged their Northwest Arkansas rivals 2-1, getting a 71st-minute winner from sophomore Tianna Jones to claim the Class 6A girls soccer championship at the Benton Athletic Complex on Saturday afternoon. Jones, who was named tournament MVP, said the Wolverines returned to Everett Field with "a completely different mentality" a year after getting shut out. "Last year, we came in a little scared -- they'd beat us twice," Jones explained. "This year, we knew we'd [beaten] them once, we can get them again. I think that just really helped us." Fayetteville (12-3-2) scored the opener in the eighth minute, capitalizing on a corner and chaos in the 6-yard box. A long ball found a Bulldog head at the back post and when it came back across the face of goal, Jayden Tyler was there to head it in off a deflection. But Bentonville West (17-6) tied it five minutes later. Sweeper Kate Carter pushed forward with a 2-on-1 opportunity, choosing to take the shot herself and slotting it into the Fayetteville net. From there, though, the game was a chess match. The Wolverines and Bulldogs had split their two earlier games this season and whenever one team had an opportunity to break the 1-1 deadlock Saturday, a defender was there to silence the potential threat. "We talk about it all the time: The [6A-West Conference] is kind of like the SEC, where everybody's so good," Fayetteville Coach Joe Thoma said. "All three of our games have been ... knock-down drag-outs -- good, clean games but just both teams going at it -- and I didn't expect anything different." With the possibility of extra time looming, Castillo called Carter forward, hoping to draw the attention of the Bulldogs' defense. The gambit worked, getting Jones in a 1-on-1 on the right wing. The forward faked a cut inside with her left foot, instead putting the ball on her stronger right before she squeezed a shot between Fayetteville's goalkeeper and the right upright. Bentonville West's reserves crept toward the sideline as the final seconds ticked down. As the Wolverines leaped into one another's arms at midfield, there was joy but not surprise. "The energy for the girls all week long was nothing short of, 'We can't wait to get to Saturday,' " Castillo said. "They wanted this. They wanted the rematch. Hats off to Fayetteville. ... But our girls just couldn't wait to get to this day."

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Bentonville West High School Athletics

BENTONVILLE WEST AVENGES LAST YEAR’S LOSS IN FINAL

MITCHELL GLADSTONE

nwaonline.com | 5/23/2022