Albuquerque Academy claims 4A boys soccer state title after thrilling finish
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (BVM) — With the third-most state titles in the history of New Mexico high school boys soccer, the Albuquerque Academy Chargers have had a lot of big season-ending victories to celebrate over the years. But the thrilling finish to Saturday’s Class 4A state title match against the top-seeded Loveland Wildcats will be hard to top.
Nursing a 1-0 lead, No. 6-seeded Academy was mere seconds away from capturing the state title in regulation time before Loveland’s Lucas Contreras lined up and delivered a free kick from over 50 yards away into the back of the net to tie the match at 1-1 in the 80th minute and send the championship into overtime. But the Chargers bounced back quicker than could’ve ever been expected after allowing what could’ve been a demoralizing goal in the biggest match of the season.
Just 38 seconds into OT, Academy junior forward Oliver Kumar collected a pass from Case Manifold deep inside the penalty box and delivered the tie-breaking goal to hand the first-time state finalist Wildcats (11-1) their only loss of the season and cap one of the more exciting finishes in the history of the state tourney. The win gave the Chargers (10-2) their fourth state title in six seasons and their ninth overall, which trails only Sandia Prep (18) and St. Pius X (17) for the state’s most all-time.
