In the end, it was a disastrous stretch of about 30 seconds that proved to be all the difference between the Douglas and Manogue boys' soccer teams.
Manogue's Keith Carlson scored a pair of goals on nearly identical crosses less than a minute apart in the second half to give the Miners a 2-0 win in the Northern 4A Boys' Soccer Regional Championship Saturday at Damonte Ranch.
Manogue outshot Douglas 15-8 in the game and held Douglas without a shot through the first thirty minutes of the second half. Not coincidentally, it was during that same period that Manogue mounted the brunt of its attack.
"There is a reason they won the league and the region," Douglas coach Milko Vasquez said. "They're height and physical attributes are superior. They have athletic guys. You can only prepare for that so much.
"We didn't do what we had to do, and that was apply pressure. We let them kick it around too much. We had to physically try to wear them down because they are not deep. We didn't do that and their athletic prowess took over in the second half."
Manogue's goals came on beautiful crosses from the right side, but on the whole Douglas played an outstanding game defensively.
Brian Randall provided a number of defensive highlights and Vasquez credited Troy Cohee with a strong game in transition.
Ivan Gonzalez posted six saves before moving forward to play in the field and Corbin Zumpft came up with three saves in his place.
Douglas next faces Las Vegas High School at 4 p.m. on Friday at Damonte Ranch in the first round of the state championships.
