The St. Aloysius Flashes had about 36 hours to shake off the thrill of a semifinal win over their biggest rival and remember there’s one game left in the season.
They’ve done it before. The challenge is doing it again.

In 2018, the Flashes ended Central Hinds’ 71-game winning streak in a game interrupted in the final minutes by a weather delay. They went on to beat Starkville Academy for the school’s first boys soccer state championship.

This year, Ryan Theriot’s goal in the final seconds gave them a 2-1 victory over Central Hinds in the semifinals on Thursday. Now they’ll face Heritage Academy in the MAIS Class AAA championship game Saturday at 11 a.m.

“They want the back-to-back championships. Whether it’s Heritage or Starkville, we’re playing for back-to-back and they’re not,” St. Al coach Scott Mathis said after Thursday’s victory, before the other Class AAA semifinal went final. “We’ll see what happens, whether we take that victory or not. Coming off a win like that, it’s going to boost their morale for sure.”

St. Al (16-1-1) is on quite a roll. It has not lost since a 7-1 defeat against Jackson Academy — which is playing Jackson Prep for the Class AAAA Division I championship on Saturday — in early November. Going back to last season, that was also the team’s only loss in its last 22 games.

None of it means much, though, if the Flashes don’t nab win No. 21 in that stretch.
“It’d be amazing,” said Theriot, who has scored 53 goals this season. “It would mean everything to me. I’ve had a good high school career and this would just top it off.”

While the Flashes figure to be the favorite on Saturday, they still need to contend with an experienced and hungry Heritage Academy team. The Patriots beat Starkville Academy 2-1 on Thursday.

Heritage lost in the Class AAA championship game in 2016, and the semifinals the last two seasons. Its players and coaches are eager for another chance to get over the hump.

“This was a game we know we had to win to go to state, but it’s a game we wanted for redemption,” Heritage Academy’s Todd Sharp told the Columbus Dispatch after Thursday’s win. Sharp scored what turned out tobe the game-winning goal midway through the second half. “We felt terrible last year and wanted to do this for our seniors.”

St. Al, meanwhile, is trying to cement its legacy as a dynasty and status as a soccer power. One state championship can be quickly forgotten, but back-to-back titles put a program on a different level, Mathis said.

“It’s going to make a huge difference. Back-to-back? A repeat? And then next year we’re moving up so it’s going to be even harder,” Mathis said. “But we’ve got such a good, young team and players coming in next year that are going to add to our team, so I’m excited to watch where this program goes.”

MAIS SOCCER CHAMPIONSHIPS
Saturday, at Jackson Prep
11 a.m. – St. Aloysius vs. Heritage Academy, Class AAA championship
1:30 p.m. – Hartfield Academy vs. Lamar School, Class AAAA, Division II championship
4 p.m. – Jackson Academy vs. Jackson Prep, Class AAAA, Division I championship