Tiara Rose is an ASU Cronkite School of Journalism student assigned to cover Camelback High School for AZPreps365.com

Carl Hayden’s quick attack and ability to sneak past Camelback’s defenders proved to be the difference as the Falcons beat the Spartans, 4-2, on Tuesday.

The game was tied 1-1 midway through the second half until Alexis Victoria, Kevin Castro and Edwin Yepiz of Carl Hayden scored three unanswered goals in a seven-minute span.

“[Carl Hayden] has so many weapons, you make just one little mistake and they make you pay for it,” Camelback head coach Rob Wagner said.

With less than 12 minutes to go and a three-goal lead, Camelback was unable to fully recover.

Tensions were high as regional bragging rights were on the line for these teams as they near the end of regular season play.

Both the Spartans and Falcons struggled to find the net early. It took almost 32 minutes for Carl Hayden to score the first goal of the game. Kevin Noria dribbled past the Spartan defenders to the top of the penalty box before quickly turning around and passing it back to Victoria who nailed the shot. The play was impressive since Noria could have taken the shot himself. 

“In the beginning of the game I was kind of selfish and I noticed that,” Noria said. “It’s a team and I want to win as a team, so I just decided to pass it to [Victoria].”

Leading 1-0 at the half, Carl Hayden head coach Abner Calderon made a formation change, adding a midfielder to put more pressure on the Spartan defenders. That pressure led to the three quick goals that changed the game in a hurry.

Carl Hayden (9-1) has now won eight in a row. The Falcons’ only loss of the season came on Dec. 17 in a 2-0 loss to the top-ranked Ironwood Eagles. Looking forward, Calderon said it is his team’s goal to stay ranked in the top four so they will be in a position to host the first couple rounds of the playoffs.

Camelback (7-3) sank from 9th to 15th place in the 5A rankings following a 1-0 loss to McClintock on Jan. 30. Before that, the Spartans hadn’t lost a game since losing to the out-of-conference Alhambra Lions on Dec. 11. Now, they have dropped two games in a row.

Still, Camelback assistant coach Brad Mallmannsaid the team is still in a good position to make the playoffs.

“[Carl Hayden] is ranked third right now in the state, so we can pretty much play with anyone," he said. "I’m confident. It doesn’t matter what seed, as long as we’re in [the 5A tournament], we’ll have a chance at state.”

If the Spartans continue to deliver on set pieces the way they did versus the Falcons, the team’s season will last much longer. Both of Camelback’s goals were scored on free kicks by Elmer Bernal. The first came on a direct kick placed just outside of the 18-yard box, five minutes into the second half. Bernal’s strike was sent from the left side of the field, crossed the entire goal, and bent perfectly inside of the right-hand corner of the net.

“Elmer has just a great touch on the ball,” Wagner said. "You can’t coach that. Just natural talent.”

Bernal’s second goal came on a penalty kick with four minutes left in the game, but that was the final time the Spartans scored.

Camelback will visit the South Mountain Jaguars (2-8) on Friday before finishing the regular season at home on Feb. 10 against North Canyon (4-5-1).

 If the Spartans are able to stay on the right side of the rankings, a play-in to be placed into the state championship tournament will start on Feb. 13.