TX Playoffs: Taylor make it past Foster with dominant performance

The high school soccer season finally got to the playoffs in the state of Texas and in just over three weeks, new state champions will be crowned in the Lone Star State.   Prep Soccer Texas continues to follow the action in the postseason and we kicked off playoff coverage on Thursday, March 20, in Katy, where the Taylor Mustangs produced a dominant performance to overcome the Foster Falcons with an emphatic 5-0 victory in the bi-district round.   <ul class="wp-block-list"> <li><a href="https://prepsoccer.com/2025/03/texas-hs-boys-playoffs-taylor-vs-foster-photos/?itm_source=parsely-api">Photos: Taylor vs. Foster</a></li> </ul>   The Mustangs were fast and furious at the start of the match and got two goals in a matter of minutes. The first started with a long throw-in by junior Nicholas Sauls which fellow junior Jesus Campos deflected with a flicked header and got the ball to sophomore Sergio Naranjo, who shot twice to score. A few minutes later, sophomore Christopher Hernandez took advantage of a defensive mistake by Foster and finished to an open net to get another one. The Mustangs saw their lead increase to three goals before the halftime break, when junior Lucas Ferro crossed the ball to sophomore Alfonso Blanco, who headed it to the back of the net.   The home team continued to play on the front foot and hit the post three times before they got their first second-half goal. It was scored by Blanco, who received a great pass from junior [player_tooltip player_id='171364' first='Jordan' last='Arney'] and dribbled the keeper before sending the ball in. SAuls scored Taylor's fifth goal after a corner kick and sealed the final score.   <blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Time is over here as <a href="https://twitter.com/THSMustangs?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@THSMustangs</a> beat <a href="https://twitter.com/FosterSoccerMen?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@FosterSoccerMen</a> 5-0 in the bi-district round of the playoffs. The Mustangs will face Northbrook or Cesar Chavez in the next round. Photos and Match Report to drop soon at <a href="https://twitter.com/PrepSoccerTX?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@PrepSoccerTX</a>. <a href="https://t.co/xywVs2WscC">pic.twitter.com/xywVs2WscC</a>— Guilherme Torres (@grtorres) <a href="https://twitter.com/grtorres/status/1902908187872813408?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 21, 2025</a></blockquote>   With the victory, Taylor move forward and will play the winners of the match between Northbrook and Cesar Chavez, who will play on Friday, to know their opponents in the area round of Division 2.   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Players of the Match</h2>    The sophomore forward played a major role in Taylor's victory by scoring two goals and was a constant threat to Foster's backline with his high-energy game. Blanco displayed a very complete game up top, getting into good spots to finish chances inside the penalty box, but also working very well away from the goal, making strong runs on the flanks and engaging in combination plays through the middle. He did a great job of getting open to score the first goal with a difficult header and was very calm to dribble the goalkeeper with a first-time touch off his chest to score the second. Blanco also hit the post twice in the second half, the first time with a shot and the second with a header. He worked very hard off the ball too, pressing defenders and helping on defense.    <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://prepsoccer.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2025/03/2J4A0060_d55af4.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-282681" /></figure>    The sophomore was extraordinary in controlling the game from his box-to-box midfielder role and strongly contributed to how well Taylor dominated possession. Primera was very active in the center of the field and got first to many second balls, besides doing a good job of winning duels too. A lefty, he was excellent in possession, distributing the game well and dictating the team's pace with great intelligence. Primera displayed great vision in the first half, connecting some great diagonal passes that found left wingback Jean Escalona open out wide. He also thrived by dribbling in tight spaces and had some strong runs through the middle.    <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://prepsoccer.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2025/03/2J4A0054_31ad99.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-282678" /></figure>    The junior had a solid shift, anchoring Taylor's backline and also contributing to the team's offense. Sauls played on the left side of the Mustangs' back three and used his great positioning and superior mobility to dismantle Foster's attempts without much effort. He had more freedom than the other center backs to help offensively and was very reliable with his buildup, connecting short and long passes with impressive accuracy. Sauls also appeared well in the attacking penalty box in set pieces and scored the team's fifth goal in one of those plays. The center-back was directly involved in the team's first goal, sending a long throw-in into Foster's penalty box and managed to create other dangerous situations with those plays as well.    <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://prepsoccer.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2025/03/2J4A0041_7e825f.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-282674" /></figure>    The junior was used as a left wingback and offered a lot offensively for the Mustangs. Covered by Sauls, Escalon had the green light to bomb forward and so he did, making numerous dangerous runs on the left. He was very creative on the ball, using different moves to beat defenders, and proved to be extremely resourceful too, improving with great efficiency. Escalona was dangerous runs out wide, which he often concluded with an accurate cross into the penalty box, but also went through the middle on some occasions.    <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://prepsoccer.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2025/03/2J4A0084.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-282686" /></figure>    The junior midfielder appeared very well in the final third, playing a role in Taylor's chance-creation and finishing. Arney moved very well off the ball and was frequently involved in the team's offense, be it by dropping deeper to get on the ball or drifting wide to get space to operate. He did great work in possession, being very hard to dispossess and connecting great passes in the final third - he found Blanco in a great spot to score the team's fourth goal with a difficult left-footed pass. Arney also appeared well into the penalty box to finish chances and hit the crossbar with an excellent free-kick shot.    <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://prepsoccer.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2025/03/2J4A0014_9e3fc3.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-282667" /></figure>    Foster never really had control of the game, but their best moments happened when they were able to put the ball on the ground and get their senior midfielder involved. Leyva was able to find good passes in the final third and also had some strong runs through the middle - he also provided good service in free kicks. In the second half, he moved to the left, where he had more space to get on the ball, and played more directly, making good runs on the ball in transition plays and getting to fire some shots. He also showed good determination to fight for the ball in the center of the field.    <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://prepsoccer.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2025/03/2J4A0049_29f234.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-282677" /></figure>

The high school soccer season finally got to the playoffs in the state of Texas and in just over three weeks, new state champions will be crowned in the Lone Star State.