DRAPER — Brian Hebdon had already won one state championship this year as a member of the Sky View debate team. On Friday, the Sky View senior garnered his second state title by scoring the go-ahead goal in the Bobcats' 2-0 win over Springville in the 4A boys soccer championship.
"There's so much joy within me right now," Hebdon said.
While the debate title was nice, Hebdon admitted the soccer title was extra special, since he has spent his whole life playing the sport.
This year's championship is the first soccer title for Sky View since 1994, and according to coach Doyle Geddes, it's only appropriate that this year's team was the one to win it.
"We didn't expect this, but it is only fitting that it is this long and that it is this team," he said. "This is a wonderful team, and we have come through a lot of adversity to make this happen. We felt like we got the result we deserved."
Players and coaches acknowledged the key to their title run as the third seed from Region 4 was trust.
"When we heard the kids finally talk about trust, we knew we had something special," Geddes said. "It was a long process, but this is the result."
Once the trust developed, the Bobcats believed they were destined for the championship. That feeling started with an upset win over Mountain View in Round 1 of the tournament. Sky View fell to the Bruins in preseason play but walked off the field believing that if they met again, the result would be different.
"I think the whole key to us was that we played Mountain View earlier in the season," Geddes said. "My guys walked off the field with confidence. We knew we could take those guys. Once we beat Mountain View, I think we felt like we were destined to take this."
But it took until midway through the second half for destiny to play out.
Sky View controlled possession of the game for nearly the entire game but could not score until the 60th minute.
Hebdon tallied the goal on a shot taken from inside the goal box on a pass from Vic Carlson.
"We felt it was coming," Geddes said. "We really felt like we had this game in control. Our whole focus was possess and move the ball around. We knew eventually we'd break them down, and that's what we did."
Once Sky View scored its first goal, it didn't waste any time in putting the game away.
Eric Anderson sealed the state championship by scoring a goal in the 71st minute.
"They have a extremely strong keeper," Hebdon said. "But if you sit there and pound on him and pound him eventually it is going to fall into the goal. That's what we did."
Springville's loss meant the end of an incredible run by the Red Devils. The third-place team from Region 6 finished the season by winning seven of its final nine games and got to the final by beating Olympus in a shootout, Roy in overtime and Woods Cross in the semifinals.