SMITHVILLE, Mo. (November 6, 2025) – The string of four consecutive district titles came to an end for the Tiger soccer team Thursday night.
The Tigers received a first-round bye in the Class 2 District 8 Tournament as the No. 1 seed. They defeated the No. 4-seeded Savannah Savages 6-2 on November 4 before falling to the No. 3-seeded Maryville Spoofhounds 2-1 on penalty kicks in the championship match.
Tigers Power Past Savannah in Semifinal
The Tigers started off the semifinal matchup hot, scoring the first three goals of the game within the first 20 minutes. Senior Brady Schoonover put them on the board in the eighth minute off an assist from sophomore Gauge Facciuto. Schoonover then found sophomore Tyler Wartner in the 16th minute to extend the lead to 2-0. Wartner scored his second goal of the game in the 18th minute off an assist from junior Brett Jones.
Savannah battled back with a goal in the 23rd minute and another in the 48th to make it 3-2. Facciuto and Wartner teamed up again in the 57th minute, with Facciuto finding the net to make it a 4-2 game. Senior Jaxon Hellyer added a goal in the 63rd minute on a header off a corner kick from sophomore Ethan Tade, and Schoonover capped off the scoring with an unassisted goal in the 74th.
Jones made 14 saves in goal on a busy night for the Tiger defense as the win advanced the Tigers to their fifth consecutive district championship game.
Spoofhounds Outlast Tigers in PK Thriller
The championship matchup with Maryville was a defensive battle. The Spoofhounds scored first in the 36th minute to take a 1-0 lead into halftime. The Tigers tied it up on an unassisted goal by Schoonover in the 73rd minute to send the game into overtime. Neither team found the net through two 10-minute overtimes, sending the match to penalty kicks.
Wartner, Tade, and Schoonover each converted their attempts, but Maryville connected on four to secure the Class 2 District 8 Championship. Jones finished with 13 saves, while the Tigers managed seven shots on goal, six of which were stopped by the Spoofhound goalkeeper.
Maryville will face the Harrisonville Wildcats on November 15, with the winner advancing to the MSHSAA Class 2 Final Four in Fenton, Missouri, on November 21.
Despite the loss, the Tigers have plenty to look forward to next season. The conference champs’ young core gained valuable postseason experience and showed the potential to keep Excelsior Springs among the top programs for years to come.
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