American Heritage heads back to state title match
PLANTATION — The American Heritage boys soccer team is heading back to the state championship game for the first time since 2019.
Senior Nicolas Weyenberg and junior Rodrigo Keiserman-Blumenthal both scored, and senior goalkeeper Hernando Ardila stepped up late to lift the host Patriots to a 2-1 victory against Pensacola’s Booker T. Washington in a Class 5A state semifinal on Saturday night.
American Heritage (18-1-2) advances to play in the state championship game against Naples on Feb. 25 at 1 p.m. at Spec Martin Stadium in DeLand.
American Heritage entered the state semifinal ranked No. 2 in both Class 5A and Florida as well as No. 4 nationally by MaxPreps.
“Booker T. Washington gave us everything we can handle, and my hats off to them and they had a wonderful season,” American Heritage coach Todd Goodman said. “We did not play necessarily well and up to our standards, but we did what we had to do to get the result. In the end, goals win games, but defense win championships. We stay true to the way we want to play and to our system. We are confident in our abilities. We knew it was going to come down to discipline and composure and that was going to be the difference tonight.”
The Patriots capitalized on an early scoring chance. Sophomore Adan Leon recorded an assist on a goal by Weyenberg in the 10th minute, and the Patriots entered halftime with a 1-0 advantage.
Keiserman-Blumenthal drilled a free kick from outside the box into the lower right corner of the net to extend the lead to 2-0 in the 63rd minute.
Booker T. Washington (11-7-3) responded when junior Kyle Hunnicutt was able to get possession on a breakaway for a goal to cut the deficit to 2-1 in the 71st minute.
The Wildcats applied pressure late on the attack and nearly tied the score in the 77th minute. Ardila made a leaping save by the crossbar as he deflected away a header attempt to preserve the lead. Ardila also was able to get to a loose ball by the net in the final minute to secure the victory.
“They could have taken it into overtime, and I got my hand on it at the end of the game and kept the team in the lead,” said Ardila, a Massachusetts Institute of Technology signee. “I like the pressure on me, and when the game comes down to the last couple of seconds because I can stand out in those moments. It means everything to me and to our team and the seniors. It’s a great feeling to go to the state final. I am very happy.”
American Heritage is on a seven-game winning streak and unbeaten in its past 13 games, which has included two ties.
“I have never been to this stage, and it’s very satisfying,” Keiserman-Blumenthal said. “We have been playing as a family, and we have been united. We treat each other as brothers.”
American Heritage has won seven state championships in school history (2004, 2005, 2007, 2008, 2012, 2018 and 2019).
“It’s been three long years for us,” Goodman said. “We have learned our lessons from the regular season. We have been motivated by the disappointments of the past couple years. We are ready to put our best foot forward in the state championship game.”
Class 7A boys soccer state semifinal: The Boca Raton boys soccer team played without six starters during a state semifinal in Clermont as a result of disciplinary action taken after a melee on the field following the Bobcats 2-1 regional final win against Celebration on Wednesday. Boca Raton fell 1-0 to East Ridge in the state semifinal.