If you ever wanted to see what relief looked like, all you needed to do was witness the looks on the Shadow Ridge boys’ soccer team’s faces Saturday afternoon.

It was a look of relief personified.

After muscling their way to the 6A Boys Soccer State Championship on Saturday afternoon 2-0 over Perry at Mesa High School, the Stallions (15-2-1) became the first team in school history, in any sport, to win a team title. That covers a span of 16 years since the school opened in 2009.

Meanwhile, the loss for the Pumas (12-6) snapped a two-year reign in 6A.

“We have been doing this for the past four years. We started like 2-11 or something. But the past years we have gotten much much better,” said Shadow Ridge’s Nathan Johansen.

“We knew if we worked hard and played together, we could do it and we did,” Johansen added.

The senior managed the lone goal of the contest through the first 89 minutes when he tallied with just under seven minutes into the contest. The marker came after a scrum in front of the net about 12 yards out with Perry defenders and netminder Brody Donovan, preceded Johansen corralling the loose ball and burying it into the Pumas’ net. 

The pace after the Johansen goal looked anything but like the contest would remain scoreless over the next 82 minutes, but that is what happened. Very physical play, with every ball being contested both ways, became the norm.

But it didn’t come without several close calls for both squads. Take for instance the sequence that occurred at the 30-minute mark in the first half.

After Perry defender Mac Bowers made an incredible save with his stretched-out foot, stopping a sure goal after the Stallions’ Daniel Pisarczyk beat Donovan, the play made it quickly to the other end. That is when Puma forward Jaymis Brown nearly tapped in the ball from close to the Shadow Ridge net with a backwards kick, only to be stopped by goalie Eli Anderson. 

The Stallions nearly made it 2-0 about 11 minutes after halftime when sophomore Trenton Strong launched a rocket from 38 yards out at a wide-open net, only to have it sail just over the cross bar. Donovan had challenged an oncoming Shadow Ridge defender up near the left corner of the goalie box, only to have the ball get cleared to Strong.

But tons of scoring would not be the norm, opposite of the other encounter between the two teams early in the season, a match won by the Stallions 5-1.

“I’m a firm believer in the first goal is the most important one. So, for us to get out there on our front foot, and play like we did. Nathan just made a helluva play, just relentless,” Shadow Ridge coach Andrew Engwall said. 

He then took a second to reflect on what his team had accomplished school wide.

“It’s pretty special. It’s something you just dream about. You never think it’s going to happen.”

Aidan Miller closed out the scoring for the Stallions in the final minute when he went coast to coast up the left side and beat Donovan.