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Hidden Valley edges Phoenix for district title MURPHY � The game of the year in District 6 boys soccer turned out to be just that in every sense: big crowd, high stakes, outstanding play. In the end, Hidden Valley scored with two minutes remaining and took the conference title away from defending champion Phoenix, 3-2, on Thursday. Matt Johnson, the district�s leading scorer and last year�s player of the year, scored the game-winner. He took a pass from Cody Borta, beat two defenders and tucked his shot into the left near corner. Hidden Valley (12-1 overall) finished the league season with an 8-0 record and its third league title in six years. Phoenix (11-2 overall) finished up 7-1. In the state playoffs Nov. 4, Hidden Valley hosts the third-place team from District 5 and Phoenix hosts the No. 3 team out of District 3. It might be a while before either Hidden Valley or Phoenix plays a match as big as Thursday�s. "It definitely lived up to what it was staged to be," said Phoenix coach Dennis Flenner. "The momentum went back and forth. It was too exciting, with it being the last game of the season and winner takes all, there was a lot of pressure on the kids. "We held the conference title from last year until 5:30 today, but it�s so hard to win that big game when it�s on the road." All but one goal came in the second half after Evan Cope gave the Mustangs a 1-0 lead at the 22nd minute on an assist from Mosiah Arteaga. In the second half, Phoenix tied it two minutes in when Lane Munroe�s pinpoint header led to a John Feeney goal from 12 yards out. Nine minutes later, Arteaga put Hidden Valley back in front from 12 yards away, only to have the game tied again when the Pirates� Adam Detrick stole the ball and scored from 20 yards. The last 10 minutes mirrored the rest of the game � lots of transition � until Johnson came up with his winning goal. Neither Hidden Valley nor Phoenix marked the opponent�s big scorer � Johnson and John Hendricks for Phoenix � but each player had plenty of company each time he touched the ball. HENLEY 4, ROGUE RIVER 0 � At Rogue River, the Hornets scored three goals in the second half to finish in third place in District 6 standings. Joe Jertberg gave the Hornets a 1-0 halftime lead with a goal in the 10th minute. In a 10-minute span in the second half, Travis Carter, Gabe Hernandez, and Stuart Ward each scored a goal to put the game away. The Hornets finished District 6 play at 6-2. Rogue River finished at 3-5. ILLINOIS VALLEY 1, NORTH VALLEY 0 � At Merlin, senior Jason Nelson-Elting scored the only goal to lead the Cougars to a District 6 win. Nelson-Elting scored on a penalty kick in the 20th minute. Both teams finished District 6 play at 2-6. Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2000 Mail Tribune, Inc.