The AHSAA

HUNTSVILLE – Collinsville senior midfielder Aaron Herrera broke open a defensive battle with Susan Moore on Wednesday afternoon. He scored two goals in just over 10 minutes late in the second half, and the Panthers went on to win 4-1 in the AHSAA Class 1A-3A boys soccer semifinals at John Hunt Park.

The victory sends Collinsville (21-3-1) into Friday’s state finals at 11:30 a.m., to face Tuscaloosa Academy (21-5). The Knights downed Providence Christian 5-3 in the other semifinal.

Collinsville won the school’s only soccer championship in 2013. This year’s team showed the kind of determination that reminded fans of that historic team 12 years earlier.

Jan Segura gave the Panthers a 1-0 lead at 20:27 with the first goal of the match. Susan Moore’s Franny Piceno tied the match two minutes later om a take-away on defense with the Bulldogs’ only goal of the night.

The match remained tied until 52:41 in the second half when Jefferson Acevedo scored on an assist from Luis Felipe Miguel. Herrera then delivered his two remaining goals – the first coming on a break-away and the final goal kicked in on a defensive reflection.