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By ANDREW SIMONSON | Sports Editor

INDIAN SPRINGS VILLAGE – Indian Springs punched two tickets to the soccer quarterfinals as both the boys and girls secured shutout wins in the second round to reach the final eight.

Springs’ girls defeated the Sylacauga Aggies 6-0 on Tuesday, April 29 at Indian Springs School before the boys beat the Montevallo Bulldogs 2-0.

The girls wasted little time getting on the board early as Caitlyn Yang scored in the 15th minute to put the hosts in front 1-0.

Indian Springs quickly doubled up the advantage as just a minute later, Mia Phillips found the back of the net to make the lead 2-0 through 16 minutes of action.

Ashna Mehra then took over for Springs, earning multiple big chances and taking advantage to increase the lead.

She got her goal total for the evening started in the 22nd minute when she scored for the 3-0 lead. Mehra went back to work in the 26th minute, scoring again to secure her brace and a 4-0 lead.

Just a minute later though, Mehra got another goal, finishing off her natural hat trick in the span of just five minutes to put Indian Springs in front 5-0.

The five-goal lead held through the halftime break as Springs held a commanding advantage, but the hosts would add to it during the second half.

In the 69th minute, the first goal scorer of the evening became the last one as Yang found the netting for her second goal of the game.

That finished off the 6-0 win and booked Indian Springs’ place in the Class 5A quarterfinals.

In addition to her brace, Yang secured two assists while Mehra also had an assist to go with her three-goal night.

As for the boys, they faced a stout Montevallo defense that gave it everything it could handle. After falling 1-0 to the Bulldogs in the area finale, Indian Springs had trouble getting past the opposing backline or MHS keeper Erik Angel.

Angel finished the match with 10 saves as he attempted to keep Montevallo in the game.

However, Springs defense held strong as well, dispatching 11 shots on target to secure a clean sheet and set up the offense for success.

After the teams went to the break in a scoreless draw, Indian Springs came up with a breakthrough in the 47th minute. Springs got past the defensive line with a run to the back post and got the ball into the back of the net to go up 1-0 and increase the pressure on the Bulldogs to respond.

Right around the hour-mark of the match, Indian Springs fired again, sending in a laser off the end line and converting the tight-angle shot.

That doubled up the hosts’ lead and paved the way for the 2-0 win that put Springs in the third round.

Both Indian Springs teams will hit the road for the quarterfinals. The boys will head to Demopolis to face the Tigers on Friday, May 2 at 6 p.m. at Demopolis High School. The girls will challenge the Elmore County Panthers on May 2 at 6:30 p.m. at the Wetumpka Sports Complex.

A win would send Springs to the Final Four at John Hunt Park in Huntsville for the first time since 2022, when both the boys and girls won the Class 4A-5A state championships.

As for Montevallo, it finished the season 16-4-2, which tied the most wins in school history and is the best winning percentage in program history. The Bulldogs’ senior class exits with a 46-15 record across two seasons in 4A and one in 5A.