The Booker T. Washington boys soccer team and its’ postseason run resembled a fairy tale.
With upset wins over Arnold, the No. 1-ranked team in the state, and Fort Walton Beach, the underdog Wildcats were hoping to ride their wave of success to a state title.
However, a two-goal deficit on Saturday was too much to overcome, thus marking the final chapter of Booker T.’s 2022-23 story.
Washington fell 2-1 to American Heritage during a Class 5A state semifinal from Heritage Field in Plantation. The Patriots were the top seed in the state bracket while the Wildcats, the No. 4 seed, end the season with a 11-7-3 record after appearing in their first state semifinal since 1993.
“That was a great battle and I’m so proud of my team. They have nothing to hang their heads low about, they got to keep their heads up,” Booker T. head coach Felipe Lawall said. “They gave a great effort that came down to the wire against the No. 2 team in the state.”
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Trailing 1-0 at halftime, the Wildcats found themselves in a larger hole after the home team scored just before the second water break. The visitors sliced into the deficit thanks to their leader scorer. Kyle Hunnicutt knocked in his team-best 19th goal this season in the 70th minute.
Booker T. had two chances to tie the score in the final 10 minute, but a header from Phinneaus Davidson and while another chance was cleared off the line.
“We fought till the very, very last second, but we could not equalize the game,” Lawall said. “It was even. (American Heritage) is a very good team, they play very good soccer where it’s very possession-orientated and they keep the ball on the ground.”
Lawall also noted Heritage’s experience playing a role. The Patriots (18-1-2) feature 14 seniors compared just Booker T.’s four.
But with a roster primarily made up of underclassmen, Lawall is thrilled with how well his team played throughout the season despite a slow start, particularly against tough competition. Both items have the head coach optimistic for the season to come.
“I don’t think our record reflects our season, I think we played really well all year long,” Lawall said. “I think our future is really bright. We have a lot of young guys, but now they’re now used to playing and facing adversity. They had a lot of resiliency, they worked so hard for each other and now they got a taste of the Final Four. … That’s a huge motivation to come back to this stage again next year and the years to come.”
The Wildcats were only 2-4-2 through their first eight matches before rebounding and moving above the .500 mark before the district tournaments. Then, they rolled to three impressive victories to claim the region title. While their run ends at the state semifinals against what Lawall calls “the best team” his team played against this season, there many to helped this young squad on this journey.
“We can’t thank enough our school, friends, families and most of all, our communities,” Lawall said. “We felt the love with how our community embraced us and got behind us and supported us throughout this journey. … We really felt the love and that was huge motivation for our boys to do their best.”
Patrick Bernadeau is a sports reporter for the Pensacola News Journal. He can be reached at (850) 503-3828, on Twitter @PatBernadeau or via email at pbernadeau@gannett.com.
