By DREW GRANTHUM/For the Reporter

Oak Mountain’s boys soccer team has moved on to the AHSAA Class 6A State Championship game after beating Murphy 3-1 in the semifinals.

It was a game of keep away of sorts, as Oak Mountain’s boys soccer team did its best to control possession of the ball and the game from the start.

The Eagles got on the board first , and early, as Stephen Carroll put one in at the 6:49 mark in the first half. Emilio Lerdo de Tejada followed suit with another Oak Mountain goal at the 11:19 point in the first.

With the two goals, the Eagles proceeded to do all they could to keep the ball away from the Panthers, allowing just 6 shots, 3 of which were on goal.

Oak Mountain took 14 total shots, but just 4 following the half. It wasn’t until the 43:20 mark that Patrick Carroll put the third and final goal away, all but punching their ticket to the final round.

“Murphy was a quality team,” said head coach Ryan Patridge. “I pressed on the boys all week that any team that wins 20 games and makes it to the semifinals isn’t going to roll over and die. We had to respect them. We had a game plan, and [we] did really well. We didn’t allow them to have the ball, and it’s tough to score goals without the ball.”

Wes Sandlin led the Eagles with 7 shots, and keeper Brad Louis logged 2 saves.
Oak Mountain will take on local rival Vestavia Hills at 3 p.m. on Saturday in the final round.