Each time the Tooele Buffaloes came to Woods Cross for the 4A soccer tournament, they rode the bus in silence, remembering their teammate who passed away a year earlier.
Friday night, they left town as state champions.With a determined 2-0 win over Ben Lomond, the Buffs claimed their first soccer crown, and did so with Spencer Parrott in their hearts.
Parrott was killed in a car accident last fall in Woods Cross. Injured with him was teammate Ryan Giles. The 1997 season was dedicated to them, and the Buffs were proud to share the trophy with former coach and Parrott's father, John Parrott.
"These are very hard working, humble kids," Parrott said. "We're proud of them. They've had a hard time this year at times. But Spencer is smiling."
Ironically, it was a lopsided affair against Ben Lomond, with the Scots handling the ball most of the night. Tooele keeper Brady Gray responded with three quick saves.
The Buffs did take advantage of its few opportunities on offense. A flip throw in by Nick Perkins landed in front of Brent Sly for an easy bouncer into the corner net.
"He throws it to the back pole and everybody goes for it," Sly said. "It's anyone's ball, whoever wants it more."
Apparently Sly was the one salivating for the score, because he duplicated the same goal 20 minutes into the second half. The deuce would be enough for the title hardware.
The chances and set plays came in dozens for Ben Lomond in the second half. Despite numerous kicks in the Buffaloes goal box, nothing came through with the Scots. The frustration came through in the closing moments with Scots coach Don Greenfield earning a red card.
"That's been our problem all year," Greenfield said. "We didn't finish shots. We knew they had the size on set plays though. (And) that flip throw is a dangerous play."
It was also the Buffaloes signature offensive play. But Tooele coach John Gray mostly had praise for the defensive side of the field.
"It was 10 years of playing together for these kids," Gray said. "We have a good defense. And good defenses stop good offenses. Our kids just stood up and played."