HUGHES HAT TRICK LEADS FRANKLIN ACADEMY TO NCHSAA 1-A MEN’S SOCCER TITLE
RALEIGH — Senior striker Nick Hughes had a huge game Saturday evening, scoring a hat trick to lead Franklin Academy of Wake Forest to a 3-1 triumph over Community School of Davidson in the North Carolina High School Athletic Association state 1-A men’s soccer championship at Dail Soccer Field at North Carolina State University.
Hughes, the Patriot co-captain, was the unanimous choice for Most Valuable Player in the championship match and ended the season with 55 goals.
Hughes opened the scoring in the seventh minute with an unassisted tally to give Franklin Academy a 1-0 advantage. Then in the 31st minute, Community School of Davidson tied the game on Francisco Prado’s 43rd goal of the season, as he made a great one-on-one move to elude a defender and slid the shot inside the far post.
But the victorious Patriots came right back just three minutes later, taking a 2-1 lead on Hughes’ second goal of the night, this one on an assist from sophomore Zach Hanson.
The third goal came from the same combination just five minutes into the second half, with Hughes scoring on an assist from Hanson for the 3-1 advantage. .
Both teams had nine shots on goal, with Patriot goalkeeper Ben Voorhis coming up with eight saves. Both teams also had five corner kick opportunities.
Franklin Academy, which defeated two-time defending state 1-A champion Wallace-Rose Hill in the Eastern Regional final, ended the season 22-1-3 while Community School of Davidson finished 22-3-1.
Both schools were making their first appearance in an NCHSAA men’s soccer championship match.
The Greater Raleigh Sports Alliance and the city of Raleigh served as primary host city sponsors for this championship, and Time Warner Cable SportsChannel was the presenting sponsor.
NORTH CAROLINA HIGH SCHOOL ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION
2015 STATE MEN’S SOCCER CHAMPIONSHIPS
Dail Soccer Field, Raleigh
1-A CHAMPIONSHIP
1 2 F Franklin Academy 2 1 3 Community School of Davidson 1 0 1
SCORING
7th minute FA—Nick Hughes
31st minute CSD—Francisco Prado
34th minute FA—Nick Hughes (Zach Hanson)
45th minute FA—Nick Hughes (Zach Hanson)