Boys soccer: Royals clinch first sectional title in six years

By RICHARD TORRES

For The Reporter

FISHERS – No tie this time.

During their regular-season meeting last month, Class 3A No. 2 Hamilton Southeastern and No. 9 Fishers battled to a 1-1 draw.

On Saturday night with the Sectional 8 title and their potential first championship since 2018 on the line, the Royals simply found a way – with a little encouragement from the past.

“It’s been a while. We talked about that. One of the former players (Sean Williams) sent me a text from that last championship team, and it said, ‘Hey, coach remind them. Pressure is a privilege,’ and we talked about that coming into tonight,” HSE head coach Chris White said. “If you’re not expected to do something, there’s no pressure. This is a great team that stood up to every challenge and accepted the pressure to come after it. They wanted it.”

The unbeaten Royals (13-0-5) played to their strengths to win 1-0 against Fishers (10-5-3), which reached its second straight sectional final after losing to eventual state champion Noblesville, 1-0, in 2023.

“Our big motto in the locker room all year has been, ‘Play together, play with toughness and have some fun.’ If we can do those three things, mistakes will happen, but the results will take care of themselves,” White said.

Their shutout win over Fishers was set in motion during the eighth minute on a corner-kick set piece that the Royals executed perfectly.

Sophomore Cooper Perez fired a kick into the box and senior Caden Joniec soared above the rest to connect for a header goal, while goalkeeper Cam Joniec and the defense held strong.

“We’ve connected at least three times this season for goals in corners, so we’ve definitely practiced it,” Caden Joniec said. “I think a lot of our team goals versus big teams have come off set pieces, and I think it’s one of the reasons why we’re who we are and why we’re undefeated, we persevere and don’t lose big games.”

They refused to let this one slip away after a grueling week that demanded a 4-2 win over Pendleton Heights in the quarterfinals and a 4-2 overtime victory in the semifinals against a feisty Mt. Vernon team that charged back from a 2-0 deficit to force two bonus periods.

“We’ve kind of had a target on our back. We saw it last game with Mt. Vernon. We came out strong and some things didn’t go our way, and the game got really hard, really chippy because teams see us as a team they want to beat,” HSE senior Jack Anderson said. “That target on our back has really been an issue, but we’ve been able to overcome it. If we keep overcoming that then I don’t think there’s anything in our way.”

The Tigers did their best to upend the Royals once again.

Fishers eliminated the Royals 3-2 in last year’s sectional semifinal round. They beat HSE 3-1 in the quarterfinals three years ago and lost 4-2 in the 2022 semifinals. In 2020, the Tigers beat the Royals 1-0 in the finals for their last title.

“They’ve improved a ton, and they came to battle. We struggled breaking the pressure and keeping our composure at times, but that’s one thing about this team all year. They find ways,” White said. “Sometimes, it’s really pretty, incredible soccer. It’s like, ‘Man, why can’t we do that all the time?’ But they find ways. It’s just a high-character team. I can’t say enough about our guys.”

Togetherness has been the secret formula, in addition to six seniors in the lineup Saturday and a six-save performance by Cam Joniec, who fended off nearly 20 attacks and several shots by Tigers’ top scorers including senior Reid Spittler (14 goals).

“That’s been the story all year,” White said. “They have that guy, and a lot of teams do. We don’t. It’s one of the things that makes it tighter in games like this sometimes, but it’s also one of the things that makes us pretty dangerous because we have a lot of guys that put it in the back of the net, and it’s just about us being on the same page and being together.”

Caden Joniec’s goal gave the Royals some early reprieve, but nothing was certain until the clock hit zero. Not against their top Mudsock rival.

“It’s been a long time. We’ve been talking in the program about how meaningful this would be. We put in the work. We started all the way back in January with morning practices, so this group has been really tight, playing really hard together. It was just a culminating moment to bring it all together and win the sectional,” Anderson said. “I think it just speaks of our character. We don’t have one guy that does everything. It’s just our group that works really well together.”

It was a proud moment for Caden and Cam, as the two brothers shared the spotlight but were quick to spread around the credit.

“I think we have the best defense in the state,” Cam Joniec said. “I haven’t had a clean sheet against Fishers yet, so I’m really excited to have it. Every big game it hasn’t been just me. It’s everybody.”

“It goes beyond just me and Cam being family,” Caden added. “I think our whole team is like a family. We’ve been so close than other years. All of us know each other so well on and off the field.”

In Thursday’s regional semifinal, once again at Royals Soccer Stadium, they’ll need the same cohesiveness to advance and vie for a potential first title since 2012 in 2A.

“We don’t care who gets the glory, we just care about the win,” White said.