As time winded down, it felt like overtime was inevitable in the 3A/2A/1A boys soccer state championship game between No. 1 Catlin Gabel and No. 3 Westside Christian at Liberty High School on Saturday.
Knotted at one, Westside was able to pick up a corner kick with under three minutes to go. Senior Luke Zeikle raised his hand and launched the pass to the back post.
There, sophomore Connor Olivier rose up and headed the ball home to put WC up 2-1 late in the match.
Catlin Gabel tried to press forward in the final 2.5 minutes, but Westside goalkeeper Ben Devlin made a couple easy saves to preserve the win and give WC its first state title in boys soccer.
“We were doing our set play where we all just get in the corner trying to get a little chaos and just head it in,” Olivier said. “I got my nose on it, I didn’t get anything else. And I just flicked it in.
“I was not thinking I would be scoring the winning goal. And the fact that it’s the first state championship is even more special.”
Westside had been sniffing around the state title for the past few years, making it past the quarterfinals for the first time in program history in 2023 en route to making the championship game.
WC fell in that one to McLoughlin, but returned to the semifinals in 2024 before falling to Oregon Episcopal.
In 2025, Westside knew what it took to get to the final match, and this time it was able to calm the nerves and get the job done.
“We made history that 2023 season and we were here, but we were like a deer in headlights, we just weren’t ready for the big scene,” Westside Christian head coach Jason Housley said. “Today we were. So a lot of emotions (with winning) just because we’ve been working hard changing the culture of the program. They had to buy in to a new system and this year we really focused on that.”
Westside stayed focus throughout a first half that saw both sides fire two shots on goal with Catlin Gabel holding the overall shot advantage 4-3.
CG was often in control in the first half with Westside having to settle for some counter looks and playing more defensively.
To open the second half, Westside attacked and was able to draw a penalty barely inside the penalty box.
Junior Esra Leontescu stepped to the dot and knocked home the goal in the near side of the net to put WC up 1-0 with 38 minutes to go.
Catlin Gabel applied even more pressure from there, and eventually broke through in the 65th minute when Levi Whalen Stewart fired a shot that was saved by Devlin.
However, the rebound went to Nolan Swaim on the near side, and he pounded home the equalizer in the middle of the net to tie it at one.
The game was back and forth from there with each side looking for a game-winner, and it finally came on the Westside corner in the 78th minute.
“I put it down in the same spot, back post every time and (Olivier) delivered,” Zeikle said of the game-winning play. “We practiced that in practice and he finished. Great goal by him and he deserves it.”
Westside lost to Catlin Gabel, the defending state champions, earlier in the year when the two Special District 1 foes met for their league matchup. CG took the match 4-3.
With that match still fresh in their memory, and following a big win over OES in the semifinals to get here, Westside was ready to take the rematch.
“Going against OES before, it prepared us for this and we were ready for Catlin, we were prepared mentally and got the job done,” Zeikle said.
Zeikle is part of a senior class that has helped turn Westside into a soccer powerhouse the last few years, a group that also includes Willy Fitzpatrick, Alexis Gonzalez, Nate Lattus and Jackson Trautman.
Now that powerhouse status is cemented with the blue trophy.
“One of my seniors just told me, ‘It took me four years, but this is such a powerful thing to be a part of this moment,’” Housley said. “I’m losing some quality seniors this year. But I have 10 next year, so just keep building. I’m excited for next year too, we can be here again.
“It’s a really cool thing to see how we’re building a reputation for Westside soccer that hadn’t been there before.”
For now, the Eagles will celebrate their first state boys soccer title and try to soak in the history that they just made for their school.
The seniors get to go out with a bang, and the standard has now been set for Olivier and the other returners to keep the momentum going.
“I’ve looked up to them, they’ve been great leaders,” Olivier said. “It’s so good to win for them for their senior year.”
“It’s such a privilege to be on this team, to be coached by Housley and (Jorge) Villafana,” Zeikle said. “Just a great privilege, I’m so happy for these boys and this team. I’m super thankful for this senior year.”
austinw@osaa.org
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