Marble Falls boys soccer beat Northeast
CAPTION: Joaquin Aguilar (left) and Eli Chocok go up for the ball with the aim of scoring a goal against Austin Northeast. Staff photo by Jennifer Fierro
The Marble Falls High School boys soccer team defeated Austin Northeast 2-0 March 21 for a bi-district championship to kick off the Class 4A Division I playoffs.
The Mustangs will play La Vernia at 6 p.m. Tuesday, March 25, at Dripping Spring High School.
“I thought it was our best defensive game,” head coach Ryan Craven said. “We knew who their players were, and we didn’t let them do what they’re good at, which is dribbling and switching the field and getting through balls. And we defended really, really well and didn’t let them switch the field, which is what they’re really good at.”
Indeed. The first half was played on the Raiders’ (18-3-1, 15-1 District 25-4A co-champions) side of the 50-yard line as the Mustangs (15-5-3, 7-1-2 District 26-4A runners-up) put relentless pressure on the opponent.
Simply, they were quicker to the ball, faster to the open spots and analyzed the field quickly to know where to go with the ball.
The only issue was Marble Falls wasn’t getting the reward of scoring. The Mustangs had one goal taken off the board because they were called offsides. Another header looked like it was going to the back of the net only to have the ball hit the crossbar. And the Mustangs misfired on a couple of other chances.
Still, they kept their poise as they continued working and didn’t let much distract them from their ultimate goal, which is winning their third consecutive bi-district crown. It’s Craven’s first as a head coach.
“I totally wanted to put high pressure on them, especially early on to try to make them make a mistake,” he said. “And they didn’t really make a mistake. But we were putting pressure and getting corner kicks, so that was really encouraging.”
The Mustangs got on the scoreboard five minutes into the second half when senior Marco Almazan found the back of the net thanks to an assist from senior Alexis Fregoso.
That goal stood freshman Eli Chocok scored on penalty kick after being fouled with 4:42 left. The goalie dived to his left and caught the ball. But referees called the goalie for encroachment, meaning he moved off the goal line before the ball was kicked and awarded a retry.
Chocok went in the opposite direction and scored for the 2-0 lead.
While the Northeast coaches protested the second attempt, Craven pointed out the referee, who stands on one sideline during the attempt, has only one job.
“He stands right there and watches for that,” he said. “So our pup got another opportunity and proud of him for not being all distraught and in his head and burying it. That shows maturity on his part about stuff from that.”
Down two goals, the Raiders upped the tempo in the hopes of scoring. But the Mustangs’ defensive intensity didn’t slip.
Craven said he and his assistant coaches talked about “switching up our formation a little bit to be a little more defensive.” But ultimately they chose not to for one reason.
“We’re just going to play the way we’ve been playing all year,” he said. “And we’re just gonna smother them with our high press.”
The tie with San Antonio Davenport 2-2 Feb. 14 forced the Mustangs to look at their defensive formation.
“We were letting their midfielders be able to cut back against the grain, and we’ve been real intentional about not letting it happen,” Craven said.
He believes that was one of the more important keys to adding the team’s ninth positive outcome in a row.
The coach also commended the performance of goalie Jett Marcum, who seemed to be at the right place at the right time throughout the match. Even when it looked like the Raiders were going to score, he leapt up for a high kick several yards away that barely got behind him. But the Mustangs were able to clear the ball out of the box and keep a clean scoreboard.
“He did a good job,” Craven said. “He didn’t have a whole lot of things coming his way, but when it did, he was ready for it.”
He praised his players for committing to their objective of getting the win and extending their season.
“I’m real proud of them for keeping their cool and not getting trippy or getting a card,” Craven said. “We want to be a real high character team and they did a good job of that. I’m thrilled to death for me, personally, that we got the win. (Former head) coach (Rick) Hoover did a great job here and I got to work with him for four years and learning underneath him. So I’m just proud that I could keep what he started going. Honestly, I’m a competitor and so are these kids, and they’re not satisfied. They want to keep playing.”
CAPTION: Marco Almazan scored the Mustangs’ first goal of the 2025 playoffs five minutes into the second half. Staff photo by Jennifer Fierro
