MIDVALE — Whether the two first-half red cards dished out to Hillcrest were warranted isn't relevant, what matters is how the Huskies managed to pull out the 2-0 victory over Taylorsville despite playing two men down.
"To score two goals two men down, and to hold them off is pretty impressive," said Hillcrest coach Paul Moizer.
The win advanced Hillcrest into the 5A soccer quarterfinals, where it will face Davis next Tuesday.
Right from the outset, perhaps because the field was so slick, the referee was blowing his whistle almost every 15 seconds because of fouls. Frustrations escalated, and about 25 minutes into the game the ref had already issued four yellow cards.
The ref was clearly trying to get control of the game, and he definitely accomplished that in the 29th minute when he red-carded Travis Jacobson for a tackle from behind. Less than three minutes later, A.J. Christensen was also booked and sent off for a tackle from behind.
"The two calls were bad. They were fouls, and maybe yellows, but not red cards," said Moizer.
The Huskies were stunned, as they should've been. But perhaps even more stunning was when Hillcrest's Russ McIllece found a seam in the defense and redirected a cross by Lars Johnson into the net just before halftime.
"That was big. The longer it goes in that situation the more of an advantage they have," said Moizer about the importance of scoring quickly. "Then they have to come after us."
That's exactly what Moizer warned his team about at halftime. He figured the Warriors would come out and employ a three-forward offense in an attempt to get the equalizer. Surprisingly, that never happened, as Taylorsville continued using its standard attack.
Hillcrest didn't have that luxury, so Moizer subbed fresh legs into the game as often as possible, and it worked. Not only did the Huskies control play throughout much of the second half, but they also scored again.
In the 62nd minute, Hillcrest's Matt Payne stole the ball from a careless Taylorsville fullback just outside the box, then slotted a pass to Johnson, who easily buried it into the open net.
"They ran their guts out," said Moizer. "The adjustments don't work if they don't work for it."
In other 5A first-round action:
DAVIS 4, WEST JORDAN 0: Leading just 1-0 at the half, Ryan Heath scored two quick goals to start the second half as the Darts cruised past the Jaguars. Paul Timothy and Bryce Stevensen also netted goals for the Region 1 champ Darts.
NORTHRIDGE 3, BINGHAM 0: Bryce Kennington, Tyson Elhers and Casey Woodyhet all scored as the Knights blanked Region 2's second-place team. Northridge will travel to Alta next Tuesday for a quarterfinal game.
ALTA 4, SKYLINE 0: The Hawks are known for their potent offense, but against Skyline Alta's defense stole the show in blanking the Eagles. Garret Treuhaft scored twice and George Grygar and Brandon Perkins each tallied once.
VIEWMONT 4, GRANGER 1: T.J. Roberts had a goal and an assist as the Vikings coasted past Granger. Nate Kennaley scored twice and Clark Willey added another for Viewmont, which will travel to Brighton next Tuesday.
BRIGHTON 7, COPPER HILLS 1: The top-ranked Bengals had no problem advancing to the quarterfinals as they spanked the Grizzlies. Jared Rasmussen, Robbie Johnson, Jon Viehweg, Eric Robinson, Skyler Rohbock, Alex Osborne and Jared Bryner all scored for Brighton.
LAYTON 2, JORDAN 0: The Lancers may have been an up-and-down team during the regular season, but they were definitely on their "A' game in blanking Jordan. The Lancers will travel to Hunter next Tuesday.
HUNTER 5, TIMPANOGOS 1: The Wolverines proved their 14-0 regular season record was no fluke as they whipped Timpanogos, which scored its only goal in extra time. Bryan Hendriks scored twice and Henry Alvarez, Darin Harris and Matt Allen all scored once for Hunter.
E-mail: jedward@desnews.com