COLLINSVILLE — DeKalb County wins championships in most sports every year. Volleyball, basketball, baseball, softball, and golf all hold tournaments to crown their champions. This year, DeKalb County added soccer to that list.
The first DeKalb County Soccer Tournament was held April 5th and 6th at Collinsville High School.
In the semi-finals, Crossville's varsity team faced Geraldine. Crossville relied on possession and the feet of Josue Hernandez, and the Lions scored both goals in the 15th and 65th minutes. A late goal by the Bulldogs made the final score 2-1.
Collinsville defeated Sylvania 4-0 in the second semifinal, setting up the championship game. Crossville and Collinsville had a hard-fought battle on Saturday.
Armando Franco scored the only goal of the game in the 34th minute, goalies Diego Gomez and Eric Jimenez kept a clean sheet, and the Lions defeated the Panthers 1-0.
Crossville coaches Jimmy Franco and Peyton Knope explained that this matchup has always been a rivalry.
“365 days worth of bragging comes from this game,” Franco said. “The first game of the season had ended in a draw, so the bragging rights were still there. The fact that this was a game with a trophy at stake made the players on both teams even more hungry to win. Ta.
“Credit to Collinsville – they played a great game. At the end of the day, the players on this team want to hoist a trophy, and that focus showed on the field.”
Hernandez, Armando Franco and Johnny Domingo were named to the all-tournament team. Omar Gomez was named tournament MVP.