ONEIDA — North Laurel is headed back to the 13th Region Boys’ Soccer Tournament championship game, setting up another highly anticipated showdown with crosstown rival South Laurel.
The Jaguars punched their ticket to the regional title game with a commanding 10-0 semifinal victory over an undermanned Middlesboro squad, showcasing a balanced offensive attack that saw nine different players find the back of the net.
Louie Ocampo led the scoring with two goals, while Gavin Martin, Malik Turner, Peyton McPhetridge, Reilly Stuber, Tucker Ebersole, Tate Philpot, Cam Anderson and Zach Jacobs each added one goal.
North Laurel coach David Broyles said his team entered the matchup focused on sharing the ball and creating opportunities for everyone.
“We came out tonight with the purpose of spreading the ball around and I felt like we did that. Middlesboro was undermanned with only nine players, so we made the adjustment to only play nine as well, but it did mess with our rhythm some,” Broyles said.
Despite the adjustment, the Jaguars eventually settled into their offensive flow and took control of the contest.
One of the evening’s highlights was Ocampo finding the back of the net twice. According to Broyles, Ocampo was the team’s lone senior who had yet to score this season entering the semifinal matchup.
“We were able to get going and scored 10 goals from nine different players which included Louie Ocampo who was our lone senior to not score this year. We were able to get everyone into the game which was good for our younger players,” Broyles said.
The victory sets the stage for another chapter in the North Laurel-South Laurel rivalry, this time with a 13th Region championship and a berth in the state tournament hanging in the balance.
South Laurel advanced to the championship with an 8-0 semifinal victory over Harlan County, setting up the third meeting of the season between the two Laurel County programs.
Broyles knows his Jaguars will face a much different challenge in the championship match after being pushed to the limit in both previous meetings with the Cardinals.
“Now we have to get ready for a rematch with a very good South Laurel team that had pushed us to the limit both times we have played them,” Broyles said.
