Forestview, South Point carrying Big South soccer torch

The Big South Conference historically isn’t a league to have multiple teams advancing deep into the soccer playoffs.

This year, not only have two teams reached the third round, but it’s the third- and fourth-place teams that are still alive.

No. 3 seed Forestview (14-8) travels to face Asheville (15-6-4) Wednesday at 6:30, and No. 4 seed South Point (10-10-2) visits Hickory (25-1) in the 3A West quarterfinals Wednesday at 6.

Forestview coach David Shearer said the Big South’s playoff situation has little — if anything — to do with the conference’s depth of talent.

“That just goes to show you that the way our high school athletic association has it for our sport, basketball and baseball really hurts the No. 1 and 2 seeds in conference play,” Shearer said. “It seems like there’s no reward for a No. 1 and 2, and we’ve experienced that for the last three years, facing top contenders in the second round.”

Big South champion Ashbrook, No. 9 in last week’s state poll, faced Northwestern champion Hickory, the sixth-ranked team, in the second round and lost 6-0. Meanwhile, after beating No. 1 seed Tuscola in the first round, Forestview wound up playing Fred T. Foard, the No. 3 team out of Hickory’s conference.

Big South runner-up Hunter Huss drew Northwestern runner-up St. Stephens in the first round and exited early with a 3-0 loss.

“I feel for Ashbrook. I feel for Huss,” Shearer said. “I understand what they’re going through because we’ve gone through it. I just wish the high school athletic association would listen to us coaches.”

Shearer said the soccer coaches association has lobbied for brackets to be seeded as they are for football, where a team can earn the top seed for its entire bracket and face the lowest-seeded team in the first round, etc. Under the current playoff format, playoff draws are predetermined based on conference finish, for instance, the Big South No. 1 faces the South Mountain Athletic No. 3.

South Point has upset a No. 1 seed (R-S Central) and a No. 2 seed (East Henderson) on its way to the third round. The Red Raiders face another tough challenge when they travel to Hickory, which is coming off a 6-0 win over Ashbrook.

The Red Raiders (10-10-2) defeated East Henderson, 3-2, on Saturday night and are making their third trip all-time to the third round and first since 2002. South Point has never advanced past the third round in school history.

“The team is on a high right now. We’re happy to be in the situation we’re in, and they want to come out and do the best they possibly can,” said second-year South Point head coach Gil Aguirre. “They know they have a big task ahead, but I know they’ll step up for it.”

Senior midfielder Kevin Patz leads South Point with 15 goals and nine assists on the season. Junior forward Nate Propst is second on the team with 12 goals. Aguirre praised the effort of midfielder Ben Propst, Nate’s twin brother, for solidifying the midfield spot.

Senior Joseph Carswell has provided a steady effort in goal, while fellow senior Thomas Pennington and junior Cameron Stillwell anchor the defense.

South Point has outscored its opposition 48-44 on the season.

“We’ve had some inconsistency through the season, but now that it’s time to step up, these guys have done so and want to accomplish their goals,” Aguirre said. “I think the key (vs. Hickory) will be defense and marking up. Hopefully we can get those tasks accomplished, so they’re not finding too many holes in our defense.”

Forestview has reached the third round for the fourth straight year and sixth time in the last eight years, but the Jaguars have never gone further. Forestview moved into this week’s state poll at No. 13 in the 3A ranks and has recently benefited from having its full lineup in place after suffering from various injuries and illnesses throughout the season.

“We peaked at the right time in our season,” senior Jordan Beam said. “That’s probably the biggest thing I can say.”

Asheville is the No. 1 seed out of the Mountain Athletic. The teams have met twice in the playoffs, with Forestview winning a second-round match in 2003 and Asheville exacting revenge a year later in the third round.

“We’ll have our hands full with Asheville,” Shearer said. “They’re always a quality team and we’ll have to compete against one of the top forwards (Kenneth Lingerfelt) in the state, so that’ll be a task in itself.”

The winners of these two games will meet each other in the next round.