All good things must come to an end, but some things should have lasted a little longer. This saying definitely applies to the Hellgate Knights boys soccer team, whose winning season came to a tragic and unexpected end in the state soccer semifinals on Tuesday, Oct. 29. The Knights were knocked out of their spot in the championship game by Billings Senior after an electric win over Bozeman four days prior.
Hellgate faced off against the Bozeman Hawks in the quarterfinals. After their undefeated season, the Knights came into the match confident, and they certainly delivered.
The game opened with a charged volley ending in a goal by junior Miles Shefloe in the first few minutes. Hellgate dominated the turf for the remainder of the first half, which was highlighted by a goal from senior star player Brady Reed in the 33rd minute.
The remainder of the first half and much of the second half went very similarly. Both the defense and offense were having incredible nights, and the ball spent much of its time in Bozeman territory. The one dark spot was a yellow card bestowed upon junior Will Ries but this just fueled the Knights even more.
To put the nail in the Hawk shaped coffin, with just over two minutes left, Brady Reed assisted his brother, sophomore Declan Reed, who had a breakaway from the halfway line, outmaneuvered two Bozeman defenders, and shot around the goalie to make the final score three nil.
Hellgate’s sizable student section exploded into chants of “shutout Shattuck,” honoring Knights senior goalkeeper Hank Shattuck. Shattuck had an incredible season, setting the new Hellgate soccer record for most shutouts by any goalie.
Coming into the semifinal match against Billings Senior four days later, Hellgate’s spirits were high, bolstered by their dominant win against Bozeman. Hellgate’s student body braved the cold and showed up sporting the unofficial theme, jackets-and-blankets. Both the student section and the team were expecting a win to send them into the championship.
At halftime the score was still nil-nil. The game was physical and full of emotion as both sides were playing their absolute hardest. Hellgate had knocked Senior out of championship contention each of the past three years so the rivalry was certainly there.
Hellgate came into the second half strong, with Shefloe scoring a tap-in, his second of the playoffs, just a minute after play resumed. It seemed Hellgate had taken control of the game, with Brady Reed assisting senior Curtis Stevens to give the Knights a 2-nil advantage with only 24 minutes remaining.
That’s when the momentum shifted. A seemingly phony injury stopped play for an unnecessarily long amount of time, and a second resulted in a penalty kick and Billings’ first point of the match. Both of these developments had Hellgate’s student section booing Senior players and referees alike, and chants of “two times your score!” were a commodity.
However, this score deficit wouldn’t last long. With just over two minutes left, Billings Senior tied the game. Dread spread around the sidelines, and that dread turned to panic as Senior took the ball back and scored again almost immediately, going up 3-2.
Seemingly abruptly, fulltime was called and the game was over. Billings Senior, 3-2. A sense of shock came over the student section as what they had just witnessed fully set in. Hellgate’s players collapsed to the ground with warranted and understandable displays of emotion. Billings Senior players erupted into overabundant, and at times disrespectful, cheering. No hands were shaken and no high fives were exchanged between the opposing teams.
Senior continued to celebrate as Hellgate first grieved as a team, then with their fans, and then quietly packed up their tents and left the field.
A truly incredible season played by a truly incredible group of young men came to an end too soon. A majority of Hellgate’s team this season had played together on the Strikers FC ‘07 team for many years. Because of this their chemistry, along with their friendship and comradery as a team, were unmatched. Hellgate may never have another boys varsity soccer team as special as this one, and it has been a pleasure to watch their dominance on the pitch all season even if it was cut short.
