Southeast wins 3-1 in soccer state semifinal

DALTON, Ga. — Off to a slow start, the Southeast Whitfield boys’ soccer team was quick to respond when faced with a deficit.

Southeast found itself down a goal at home in its Class AAAA state semifinal match Tuesday night with Marist, but the Raiders rallied to win 3-1 and earn a place in the state title game.

“Throughout the season, we’ve experienced that,” Southeast coach Todd Close said of the shaky start. “It’s something that we’ve had to learn from and find how to regroup.”

Marist’s Michael Urbanek put the visitors ahead with 21:57 left in the first half, but the lead was short-lived. Less than three minutes later, the Raiders’ Chris Guijon took aim from well outside the box and let the equalizer fly.

As a tie loomed at halftime with 20 ticks to go, Uli Dominguez had other ideas. A corner kick rattled around in front of the goal before Dominguez got back up from falling and slotted it into the right corner for a 2-1 lead.

“This was a team we saw last year as a No. 3 seed, and the game ended 0-0 after regulation,” Close said. “We knew they were a good team, and we talk all year about playing 80 minutes and what’s the verdict at the end of the game.”

The second half’s starting whistle brought a different story than the first for Southeast, seizing control of the game early on.

A pinpoint pass from the midfield found Alexis Rodriguez in stride over the top two minutes in. Rodriguez took care of the rest, smacking it past the goalkeeper with the outside of his foot.

“Any team would love to come out fast, whether it’s at the start of the game or the start of a half,” Close said. “Getting that extra goal let us settle down and get back to what we talked about and everyone doing their job.”

Marist pressed for an opportunity to get back in the game, but Southeast’s stingy back line anchored a stout defensive effort.

“They did a phenomenal job,” Close said. “When I talk about how proud I am, those guys jump out because they deal with a lot of the pressure, and if the game doesn’t go our way, they get a lot of the blame. If we win, they don’t get a lot of credit. They went to work and collectively played great.”

The Raiders will play for the state championship Saturday afternoon at 2:30 at McEachern High School. The opponent will be Druid Hills, which edged Blessed Trinity on penalty kicks.

Contact Idris Garcia at sports@timesfreepress.com