The best place for a 5th District boys soccer team to be in come region tournament time is in the champion slot of the bracket with a first-round game against a district runner-up.
Trigg County snatched the district championship and the coveted region tournament placement on Monday with a 5-0 win over Lyon County.
It’s Trigg’s second straight title and sixth in the past seven seasons.
On a brisk evening that saw both teams missing starters due to fall break, the teams had trouble creating offense with Trigg holding a 7-1 advantage in shots in the first half. The lone tally came when Alex Hurt redirected a throw-in with 11 minutes left.
Lyon County’s defense put up one of its best efforts of the season as they continually thwarted Trigg’s chances.
The Wildcats pushed across a second goal when James Garnett scored off a corner kick from Nate Kelly in the 56th minute.
With the match still teetering on uncertainty entering the final 10 minutes, the Wildcats scored twice in a little over a minute to create some breathing room. Kyle Choate, who has missed most of the season with a shoulder injury, headed home a throw-in from Slaton Carter with 9:43 left for a 3-0 advantage.
Axel Rayburn followed with a 40-yard laser that found the upper corner of the net.
Garnett, who would later be named the district player of the year, scored his second goal of the game and 16th of the season off a Kelly corner for the final 5-0 margin.
Trigg County only needed two saves from Cam McCormick as they enjoyed a 20-2 shot advantage. Cayden Webber made nine saves for Lyon County.
After a 0-6-1 start to the season, Trigg County improved to 6-8-5. The win was Trigg’s 50th all-time against Lyon County in 84 meetings.
Lyon County dropped to 1-13.
Both teams move into next week’s Second Region Tournament at the Stadium of Champions. Other teams in the tournament are Madisonville, Caldwell County, Webster County, and Henderson County. The 8th District semifinals will be held on Tuesday night and will produce the final two entrants.
