Vandy boys’ soccer 1 win from title

TYG Takeover: Local hoops pro mentoring, training local children
February 24, 2015
PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Laresah Gros
February 24, 2015
TYG Takeover: Local hoops pro mentoring, training local children
February 24, 2015
PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Laresah Gros
February 24, 2015

The Vandebilt Catholic boys’ soccer team is one win away from the Division II State Championship.

The youthful Terriers punched their tickets into the State Championship Match on Saturday afternoon in a thrilling, 2-1 upset triumph over No. 1 Beau Chene in the semifinals – a back and forth battle that had Houma fans on the edges of their seats throughout the duration of the match in Buddy Marcello Stadium.

With the win, No. 5 Vandebilt will now head back to Tad Gormley Stadium for a tilt with No. 7 Ben Franklin in the finals – the same Ben Franklin team that defeated the Terriers in the finals last year.


The first kick will be Friday at 6:30 p.m. Terriers’ rookie coach Paul Shenton said he’s not making any predictions, but added that his team is playing its best soccer of the season right now – something that gives the coach confidence as we approach the championship match.

“Am I surprised? Honestly, no, I’m not surprised,” Shenton said when asked about the Terriers’ run. “We worked hard with them during the summer, and I knew that we had a lot of talent in place. Honestly, our goals were always to be somewhere around the final, if not the champion. … I think (this season) has worked out quite well. We’re peaking at the right time, and in this sport, you never want to peak too early and burn out, and we’re not doing that, so we’re upbeat and excited.”

Getting to the finals was quite a chore. Beau Chene didn’t give up its No. 1 ranking without leaving absolutely everything on the pitch.


The two teams felt out one another for the majority of the first half with neither side holding a significant advantage over the other. With just more than 10 minutes to play in the opening half, Vandebilt’s offensive aggressiveness paid off when senior Mason Arnette found the back of the net on a loose ball set up by a corner kick.

That 1-0 advantage lasted into halftime, and it grew right out of the lockers when striker Mitch Gautreaux headed one in to put Vandebilt up 2-0 with 30 minutes of soccer to play.

Those final 30 minutes lasted an eternity for fans of the Terriers.


After going behind two goals, Beau Chene shifted into desperation mode, creating absolute chaos on the offensive end of the field – generating pressure on all edges of the pitch.

They broke the ice and made it 2-1 with just more than six minutes to play when midfielder Niven Brown broke through the defense and hammered a shot through the back of the net.

“That was an outstanding individual effort,” Shenton said of Brown’s goal. “He made a great play.”


From there, Terriers’ goalie Charles Doskey took over, and the rest is history.

After cutting the deficit to 2-1, Beau Chene continued to up its intensity in an attempt to score the equalizer. But for every shot they attempted, Doskey had an answer, making several big-time saves in the final minutes to save the match and season for his team.

In the final seconds, Beau Chene’s onslaught continued, but it was for naught, as the officials blew the match complete with the Terriers still clinging for life to their 2-1 advantage – which was now a 2-1 victory.


“He was incredible,” Shenton said of his goalie. “He really was absolutely incredible. We went up 2-nill, and the longer the game went on, it was so important that we maintained our organization. They got a great goal, and then got what felt like shot after shot after shot to try and tie it. Some of those saves he made were just unbelievable. He was a huge reason why we got past this one. We wanted so badly for our effort on the offensive end to be matched by our efforts on the back-end, and he and our defense did that.

“We had kids wanting to puke at the end of the match they were playing so hard.”

With the win, the Terriers will now spend the week recuperating their energies and also preparing for Ben Franklin. The two schools are longtime soccer adversaries, who have played several times in the past several seasons.


Ben Franklin trumped the Terriers 3-2 in the State Championship Match one year ago. In January, the teams met and the margin was even more lopsided – a 4-1 victory for Ben Franklin.

But January is January and February 27 is the only date that matters. Recent history shows that the Terriers have come an awfully long way in recent weeks.

“I just want them to be relaxed and be composed and go out and play this like any other soccer match,” Shenton said. “We’re a young team, so there’s a bit of a concern that nerves will be a factor for us. But we will work to keep them relaxed.


“They are very familiar with us and have an idea of what we do. We’re somewhat familiar with them and have an idea of what they will do. The champion will be the team that’s most poised in the big game situation.”

Paul Shenton