ST. CHARLES – Clayton senior Sam Leonard did not know what to expect when he joined the Greyhounds’ soccer team.
A member of the St. Louis City MLS Next club team from his freshman year through his junior year, Leonard decided to play for his high school team this season.
“I wasn’t really sure what (the experience) would be, but this has been the most fun I’ve ever had playing soccer in my life,” Leonard said.
Leonard assisted on a crucial second half goal, part of a three-goal explosion in a 17-minute span, as Clayton defeated St. Michael the Archangel 3-0 to win the Class 2 Missouri High School Activities Association state championship Thursday at Lindenwood University’s Hunter Stadium.
Clayton (20-4), which closed out the season on a 13-game winning streak, won its first boys soccer championship in program history.
“This is a well-deserving group. I feel so lucky to be a part of this journey, and I’m so happy for them,” said Clayton coach Brendan Taylor, who also coached the Clayton girls soccer team to their first state title in 2023.
After an evenly played first half in which both teams found scoring chances, Clayton emerged from halftime with a mission to take care of the ball.
“It was about eliminating turnovers. The things (St. Michael) got in the first half that were really dangerous were because of our turnovers,” Taylor said. “If we could possess the ball and make them chase us a bit, holes would develop.”
The first opening came on a corner kick six minutes into the second half when senior Wole Adeoye’s service was headed into the back of the net by senior defender Keaton Ramon. It was Ramon’s third goal of the season, with two coming at the Lindenwood championship site.
“In the first half, we weren’t able to find (a goal), but we always felt it coming,” Leonard said. “Coach (Taylor) had a good halftime talk and we came out firing. Once we got the first one, we thought we’d keep getting them.”
Just 14 minutes later, Adeoye and Leonard helped in creating one of the prettiest goals of the tournament.
Adeoye lofted a backspinning, 50-yard pass for Leonard to chase down along the right sideline. Leonard outraced a Guardians’ defender to the ball, cut inside and sent a soft pass across the box that junior Nico Vuong tapped into the net to give Clayton a 2-0 lead.
“That second goal was really nice. Wole played a great ball to me, I saw Nico and thought he’d have a better shot than me, so I passed it up and it led to a goal,” said Leonard, who led the Greyhounds in scoring with 18 goals and nine assists.
For Adeoye, who surpassed 100 career points earlier this season, the ability to train with Leonard over the summer helped develop their connection on the field this fall.
“We worked hard this summer and we were on a mission coming into August,” Adeoye said. “That led to us having some great chemistry and that was a big part of our success this year.”
Two minutes after Clayton’s highlight-reel goal, senior Adam Turner displayed slick footwork by spinning between defenders, dribbling to the right corner and sending a cross that junior Matthew Hurst blasted into the net to give the Greyhounds their third goal in a 16:30 span.
“We felt good at halftime, but they came out in the second half and took it to us,” St. Michael coach Rob Putthoff said.
St. Michael (20-5), which came back from a second half deficit to defeat Orchard Farm in the semifinal the previous night, tried to conjure up more late game magic.
A 20-yard rocket from freshman Wesley Medlin gonged the crossbar and caromed directly down to the goal line before it was cleared away by Clayton goalkeeper Samuel Rotskoff. Moments later, a cross from Medlin was headed inches over the crossbar by Guardians’ 6-foot-4 leading scorer Nick DeVoss.
“We kept playing hard,” Putthoff said. “We had one hit the crossbar that didn’t go our way. It would have nice to at least get one in, but we battled.”
And the Clayton season had its share of battles, including a three-goal loss to Webster Groves and a four-goal loss to St. Dominic in September.
“In the postseason, it’s telling the guys, ‘The records don’t matter. You don’t carry your record into the postseason, but you carry the lessons, and if you’re willing to apply those lessons, we’ll be fine,’” Taylor said.
As the clock reached zeroes Thursday and the postgame celebration began, Leonard took a moment to enjoy the joyful noise of the Clayton student section and to reflect on his high school soccer experience.
“I was just taking in how big of an accomplishment this is for us. It’s the first state tournament for the boys soccer program in Clayton High School history and to be able to do that in the fashion we did, I just had to take a moment to soak it in,” Leonard said.
And the ease in which Leonard acclimated to the Clayton team went a long way in the Greyhounds’ success.
“You almost expect someone in that situation coming in and feeling bigger or better than – but he never did. He is humble. He is focused and determined, such a good teammate, so coachable. He has a great attitude and he just fit right in,” Taylor said.
And the next fitting will be for championship rings.
“It just worked out better than I ever thought it could,” Leonard said. “To bring back a state championship means the world to me.”
Photo gallery from this game: https://benvessa.smugmug.com/Boys-Soccer/Boys-Soccer-2024/Class-2-championship-Clayton-vs-St-Michael-the-Archangel-