By Josh Franklin, Roswell Daily Record — No. 15 seed Centennial upset No. 2 seed Roswell, 2-1, at the Cielo Grande Sports Complex in the first round of the NMAA boys’ 5A state soccer tournament on Oct. 28.
Midfielder Hiram Alvarado gave the Coyotes a 1-0 lead from the penalty spot, which they held into halftime. But Centennial converted two second-half scoring chances to complete the comeback.
“(Centennial) kind of understood the assignment and they executed their game plan,” Coyotes coach Robert Madrid said. “They were a little bit hungrier … than we were.”
Roswell won the teams’ first meeting 3-1 on Sept. 8, recording an assist on each of its goals. In the rematch, Centennial disrupted the Coyotes’ passing game by controlling the midfield.
“We were trying to create off the dribble, and that’s not what we do. We create off of our passing and our movements off the ball,” Madrid said. “Centennial did a good job of plugging up our midfield and making us have to play a different style.”
Roswell couldn’t find an equalizer, and the Hawks erupted in celebration at the final whistle as Roswell’s fans fell silent.
The Coyotes finished the season 18-2-1, while Centennial improved to 11-8-2.
The early exit isn’t what Madrid and the Coyotes envisioned for their season, but it doesn’t erase the other milestones they reached.
“We had a pretty historic season. We broke the school’s record for most goals scored in a single season. … We scored 114 goals. … And we won the district championship,” Madrid said. “I still view this season as successful.”
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