MVP Stimson, Brophy lead HVA title surge
Hawks shock defending state champ Dawgs, Hendersonville, Bartlett with late goals
Ben Brophy, senior star forward, then broke a scoreless tie in the 79th minute with the game’s only tally — anther penalty kick — to edge Hendersonville in the state semifinals Thursday night, May 22.
And just when Bartlett sent its own shocker into the net, tying the Hawks 3-3 with just 4:14 to play in the state title match Friday afternoon, May 23, Brophy needed just 81 seconds to answer — and break a school record in the process.
The senior launched a roughly 30-foot shot, just right of center, past a diving Bartlett goalkeeper into the far lower left corner of the net at the 2:53 mark of regulation, his 80th career goal to break the record.
And win the program its second state crown (also 2011), 4-3, in Richard Siegel Soccer Complex.
“That was one of the most amazing goals I’ve ever scored in my life,” the senior star said.
“It does suck when we’re that close (up 3-2) and they do tie it up,” he added. “But it had happened before and we just kept playing hard, and I just hoped we could get in there and just score another one and take it home. And that’s what we did.”
About his team, “We’re exhausted, but we left everything out there and that’s what we had to do,” Brophy said. “Now it’s time to rest, and we did it, so we can go home happy now.”
“When you have a center striker like Ben, that’s another player who’s got that attitude, like a finishing attitude, an attitude that ‘when I kick the ball, this is going to go in the net,’” said HVA head coach Ray Dover, whose team ends with a 20-3-3 record. “That is something that we try and foster with him.
“It was a fairy-tale ending; I mean, you get a goal to break the school record right there at the very end of your career with less than (three) minutes to go and sink the other team” and win state, the coach added about Brophy. “We needed him to be a great player, and I was telling my assistant coaches this morning, I was like, ‘We need him to have a big day,’ and he did.”
However, it was junior ---- Asher Stimson who was named tourney MVP, getting the Hawks started offensively with its first two goals, overcoming a 1-0 Bartlett advantage in the --- minute, then putting HVA up 2-1 in the --- minute before the Memphis team tied things just before halftime.
“Our coach always says just battle through adversity,” Stimson said of Dover. “I think today was a perfect example of that. As you saw, we went down the first 10 minutes and battled back. Then we were winning by one, they equalized. Then we go up, they equalize again. Then Ben Brophy does what Ben Brophy does and puts in the back of the net.
“I think today sums up this season,” he added. “ Just battle through adversity is a message that coach has been saying all season. We showed that today.”
Hardin Valley regained the lead in the 49th minute on senior Nathan Holbrook’s goal from around the top of the box.
“A lot of us been playing together since we were 8 or 9 years old,” Holbrook said. “… It it’s great to end my last game of soccer with the state championship.”
“And then you got Nate Holbrook, who’s our multisport guy just like Brophy; he played great,” Dover said.
The Hawks coach said he continued challenging his team through the state tourney, “‘Do you want this more than the other guys? … Fatigue is going to be temporary, but the memories and the regrets will last you forever. So let’s make a decision between our ears.’ It’s not always who the better team is; it’s just who wants it more.”
About his team bouncing back after the late Bartlett tying goal, “I can tell you this much, they’ve had resiliency all year,” Dover said. “… We got down two goals to Bearden at this state tournament” with less than 30 minutes to play. “This is the fifth time we’ve come back and won a match this year when we’ve gotten down. And so it fully goes back to their relationships that they have with each other. These guys love each other, and they’re not going to let each other down when something bad happens. That’s the reason that they won the state championship.”
About some of his other top seniors, “Chris Colmack was fantastic in the back for us as a center-back,” the coach said. “Franky Manrod played in multiple positions this season; just an outstanding player when it came to that.
“Then you had guys coming off the bench like Jackson Yarbrough, who put in some good minutes tonight up at the wing, just working because he’s such a good athlete.
“Gavin Standefer, who played center defensive mid for us and had a knee injury in the Bearden match, didn’t really play last night in the semifinal other than about 10 or 15 minutes,” Dover added. “So he toughed it out and played in the state championship. So that effort right there is unbelievable.
About his team, Brophy said, “It starts with our keeper, Adam Leonard, an amazing goalie with his communications, leadership
“Then our defense, just with Frank (Manrod, Josh (Colmac), Aaron (Garcia), Asher (Stimson), Vance (Easler). Everybody who comes in there, they always play their hearts out,” the senior added. “They don’t let anything bounce over them. “They get it out when they need to,” Brophy added. “Our midfield is always so compacted together. They play together all the time. I feel like our attack is the best attack in the state, easily. I think we proved that today and this week.”
