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SANDY — All season, Davis High's girls soccer team has looked forward to a championship rematch with reigning state champion American Fork, for another chance at the Utah County power.
Officially, the Darts needed 80 minutes against Pleasant Grove to punch their ticket to the rematch. In reality, it took a few moments.
Grace Nicol and Alizabeth Arevalo each scored twice — including a pair of first-half goals just a minute apart — and No. 2 Davis set up an all-chalk final with a 4-1 win over Pleasant Grove in a Class 6A state semifinal Tuesday night at Rio Tinto Stadium.
CC Norman scored for the Vikings, who were held to just five shots on goal as the Darts' defensive pressure turned a close game on paper into a veritable championship-caliber matchup Friday against defending champions American Fork.
"It's our goal, right?" said Davis coach Souli Phongsavath, whose team lost 1-0 to the Cavemen in last year's final. "To be able to get back here, I'm so proud of the girls — especially the way it ended last year. It's difficult. But for them to fight through injuries and a weird year with COVID and what not — to make it back here and hopefully get some redemption on Friday would be fantastic."
Arevalo, who moved to Kaysville this year after playing last year at Logan High, opened the scoring inside of 10 minutes, cleaning up a spilled shot in front of goal for a 1-0 advantage. After a phenomenal save by the Vikings' defense in the seventh minute, the senior needed just one touch to bury the opener and give the Darts (18-1) a lead they would never relinquish.
Just over a minute later, Nicol doubled the advantage with the final touch on as a gaggle of Darts pushed forward looking for another score. She added a left-footed rainbow with 27 seconds on the clock, looping a brace into the top shelf to give Davis a 3-0 halftime lead and set up Friday's showdown.
"She's struggled with that shot all season," Phongsavath said with a bit of a laugh. "Last year, she made that shot once a game — from outside the 18, in the corner. I think she's finding her range at the right time for us."
Pleasant Grove (11-7) opened the second half with back-to-back goal-line saves — but one save came in a goal-line clearance off a defenders' arm. Arevalo stepped up to the spot and converted the penalty with a right-footed shot inside the left corner, and the Darts kept their foot on the gas pedal into a championship of regular powers.
Norman pulled one back for Pleasant Grove in the 54th minute, converting a one-on-one chance with the goalkeeper to break the shutout.
But that was as close as the Vikings would get.
"The plan," Phongsavath said, looking ahead to Friday after the final whistle, "is to hopefully win on Friday."
American Fork 2, Fremont 0
The gratitude for the win was there. But if top-seeded American Fork looked disappointed after its win over Fremont in the 6A state semifinals, consider the standard the Cavemen have held all year.
Addie Gardner and Nicole Lewis each scored a first-half goal to help top-seeded American Fork hold off the Silverwolves, 2-0 in the semifinals of the Class 6A state tournament Tuesday afternoon at Rio Tinto Stadium.
But if the Cavemen's celebration was muted after the win, consider the fact the defending 6A champions were already considering a pair of late injuries and awaiting the results on those long-term diagnoses. That, and they've been to this point before in a program that holds high expectations among themselves, having outscored opponents 68-22, including a 7-2 advantage in two playoff victories.
"It's bittersweet, because that's a team that still wants to get better," American Fork coach Derek Dunn said. "That's a team that knows they didn't give everything they needed … and we scooted by. I knew Fremont was going to bring it … and that's exactly what they did.
"We were just a little bit better today."
Abby Bloxham made three saves to earn the shutout for American Fork (18-2), whose defense held the Silverwolves (11-9) to just six shots.
"She came up big today, and made a couple of big saves at the beginning," Dunn said. "The confidence in our goalkeeper is something our defense has.
"This year, our defense has stepped up."
Gardner opened the scoring in the 12th minute, latching on to the end of a through-ball in the box before left-footing a shot inside the far post to go up 1-0. The senior scored her 16th goal of the year and 36th goal of her career to give the Cavemen a lead they would never relinquish.
Lewis buried a penalty kick with two minutes left in the half, sliding a shot into the left side netting that put the top seeds up 2-0 at the break.
"Each of our goals this year have been setup plays like that," Dunn said of Gardner's goal. "I wish she could make that in her sleep, but if that's the case, we'll keep feeding her in the far post like that."
The Cavemen outshot 13th-seeded Fremont 13-6, and even tried to add another score through Gardner's 66th-minute chip with her left foot that sailed just high over the crossbar.
It could've been better. Cleaner. Better managed — especially when a late yellow card to senior Hannah Holmstead could've been worse.
But the damage was done, and American Fork will take the result: a spot in the finals, where the Cavemen will go for a third state title in four years. That's a reason to celebrate — even it didn't feel all that way Tuesday evening.
"I'm happy we're going to the finals. I really am," Dunn said. "But we can't squirt by. We've seen both of these teams (Pleasant Grove and Davis), and it's going to be a battle in this final.
"By far, this was the hardest season I've ever had to coach. My kids have been great at following protocols … and to do this has been super hard. But to get to a final and to be able to play under the lights on a Friday night, we're so grateful for this. We're here again, but there's more to it this year than we've ever had to go through before."
