The University Heights Academy Blazers are headed back to the 8th District boys’ soccer championship game for the 5th year in a row. The Blazers got big nights from Connor Dill and Preston Thomas and controlled the second half on their way to a 5-2 win over the Christian County Colonels Monday night at the Stadium of Champions.
Dill scored three times, while Thomas added the other two goals to pace the Blazers’ attack. UHA would end up outshooting Christian County 27-8 on the night, including a 17-3 differential in the second half of play.
The Blazers got on the board first at 9:30 when Connor Dill took a pass from Preston Thomas in the center of the field, just outside the box, and found the net to give UHA a 1-0 lead.
Christian County evened the match up just three minutes later. In the middle of a cluster of traffic in front of the goal, Leland Creamer snuck a shot into the goal to make it a 1-1 match.
UHA got the lead back at the 25:30 mark when Connor Dill beat Christian County goalie Josh Settle to a ball in the box and got just enough on a header to bounce the ball softly into the goal, putting the Blazers up 2-1.
Christian County missed out on a big chance to seize the momentum back before the half. In the final seconds of the first half, Bryan Linares sent a shot rocketing towards the goal that deflected off the crossbar, leaving the score at 2-1 going into the break.
Early in the second half, the Blazers extended their lead. Connor Dill headed a pass over to Preston Thomas, who then found the net to give UHA a 3-1 lead.
Christian County got right back in the game at the 53:00 mark when Bryan Linares, on a run down the middle of the field, took a long shot and skidded it across the turf and into the net to cut the Blazer lead to 3-2.
A turning point in the match came at 65:30. Connor Dill sent a pass from the corner to the front of the goal, where, just as it appeared it would be snagged by Josh Settle for Christian County, Preston Thomas headed into the net pushing the lead back out to two goals at 4-2. The Blazers would then add an insurance goal at 69:00 when Connor Dill scored his third goal of the night.
The win, which improves the Blazers to 10-10 on the season, moves UHA into the district championship game, where they will face the Hopkinsville Tigers for the fourth time in the last five seasons. Hoptown advanced to the title game with a 6-0 win over Fort Campbell.
