One second remained on the clock. The fate of a season — and the hopes and dreams that came with it — appeared as if it could rest on the outcome of a 35-yard free kick.

Players and coaches on both teams looked on from the sideline. Spectators, some bundled in blankets on an unseasonably overcast and crisp day, waited with anticipation.

For the Madison High School boys soccer team, this was a moment nearly a quarter-century in the making. The ensuing free kick fell short of the intended target as time expired. And for a few moments after, the Mavericks thought they also missed their goal.

But deflation turned into elation. Despite a 3-2 setback vs. Johnson on Tuesday at Blossom Athletic Center, Madison advanced to the UIL Class 6A playoffs for the first time in 23 years.

Johnson (15-4-4, 12-0-4, 40 points) claimed an undefeated District 28-6A championship. Brandeis (12-4-4, 11-2-3, 36 points) was second and LEE (14-8-1 9-6-1, 28 points), which two weeks ago faced a steep climb to capture a playoff spot, locked up the No. 3 seed. Madison (12-8-1, 9-6-1, 28 points) is the fourth seed because it lost a head-to-head tiebreaker to LEE.

Reagan (9-6-7, 7-3-6, 27 points), with a 6-3 loss to Brandeis, missed out on the playoffs for only the third time in its 24-year history and first since 2005. The Rattlers had made the postseason in each of the previous 17 completed seasons.

“I don’t even know how to describe it,” Madison junior Matthew Espinoza said. “It’s such a good feeling that we’re able to do this for the school and program.”

What these Mavericks did was rare and a long time in coming. They landed their first playoff berth since 2001 and sixth overall in 42 seasons.

Madison qualified for the postseason in 1985 as the district champion under Coach Tony Angeleri, in 1990 under Coach Pete Grandjean, in 1995 under Coach Bob Foster and in 1999 and 2001 under Coach Tony Castaneda.

Matt Colvin (Southlake Carroll girls soccer coach), Kerwin Johnson (Texas Lutheran University women’s soccer coach), Michael Babcock (Madison girls soccer coach) and Randy Holland (local club coach and former professional player) are among the alumni who were instrumental in the Mavericks’ past success.

In the aftermath of the program’s heyday, though, Madison found the going tough as Churchill, Reagan and LEE each won state titles, MacArthur advanced to the state tournament and Johnson made a regional tournament appearance.

“Every season is a battle in this district,” Madison coach Glenn Hitzfelder said. “It’s just amazing to be able to hang out with this great group of kids.”

In a drama-filled scenario where Madison, Reagan, LEE and Churchill each went into Tuesday’s district finales with a chance to either clinch or remain alive for a playoff spot — and where scoreboard watching and score updates from games played at three venues located only two-tenths of a mile apart took on a life of its own — Madison and LEE rose to the occasion.

LEE, which was virtually in a must-win situation going into its final three contests to avoid missing the playoffs for the first time in Coach David Rogers’ 10 seasons at the helm, flexed its mettle. The Volunteers defeated Madison 4-1 on March 8, rallied to tie Johnson 1-1 on March 12 and then topped Churchill 4-2 on Tuesday.

At Blossom, on adjacent fields, Madison and Reagan both faced early deficits. Both could’ve made the playoffs with a win or tie, and there was a scenario where each could’ve advanced even with a loss.

Reagan trailed Brandeis 4-0 and Madison faced a 3-0 hole vs. Johnson early in the second half. LEE, meanwhile, led 4-1. If the results held, LEE and Madison were playoff-bound.

“I looked over on the field next to us and saw the score and I started getting a little excited, but not too excited,” Espinoza said. “I wanted to still play and get the job done.”

The Mavericks pulled within 3-2 with 20 minutes left as Dylan Mendoza and Espinoza scored goals. They continued pushing for the all-important tying goal, which included the last-second free kick.

“I felt a little bit of the nervousness and pressure,” Espinoza said. “We knew that we had the capabilities to do it from the very beginning of the season. It’s a special group. We came on the field and fought to the end and almost tied it up, almost got the result.”

terrence@terrencesports.com
Twitter: @sa_terrence1