Regional soccer title on their minds, Tigers crush the Vikings in semifinal match

Photo: Sentinel/Clark Brooks

Emir Martinez lines up a pass during second half action against Danville. The Urbana junior scored twice in his team's overwhelming victory over the Vikings on Tuesday at the Urbana Tigers Sports Complex.

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URBANA - The #3 seed Urbana Tigers cruised past Danville in a dominant 7-0 shutout Tuesday evening, advancing to the Class 2A regional final. Playing on home turf at the Urbana Tigers' Sports Complex, the Tigers showcased their offensive prowess, scoring twice in the first half and exploding for five more goals in the second. The win improved their record to 11-8-1, while Danville's season ended at 7-12-4.

Urbana's attack was ignited by junior Emir Martinez, who opened the scoring just 10 minutes and seven seconds into the match. His early strike set the tone for what would be a lopsided contest. Martinez wasn’t finished, netting his second goal of the game with 17:10 left in the second half to push Urbana's lead to 5-0.

The Tigers’ relentless offensive display continued with Winner Nana scoring two goals of his own. His first came with just 5:32 left in the first half, giving Urbana a comfortable 2-0 lead at the break. Nana wasted little time adding to that tally after halftime, striking again just 7:34 into the second half to make it 3-0. Not to be outdone by his younger brother, senior Fortunel Nana found the back of the net shortly after, extending the lead to 4-0 with 31:31 remaining.

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Photo: Sentinel/Clark Brooks

Fortunel Nana settles the ball during the second half. The senior booked a goal eight and a half minutes into the second half for the Tigers.

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Danville, seeded #6 in the Warrensburg-Latham Subsectional, struggled to contain Urbana's aggressive offense. The Vikings, who finished 9th in the Big Twelve Conference, failed to generate significant scoring chances throughout the match. Their defense, which had held Urbana to just two goals in their previous meeting on October 1, couldn’t replicate that performance in the postseason.

Urbana continued to apply pressure even as the match seemed out of reach. The Tigers’ sixth goal came courtesy of Arnau Sanchez-Marin, who chipped the ball over the Danville goalkeeper in the 74th minute. Sophomore Lemex Ondongo capped off the scoring with just 53 seconds left, adding the final dagger in Urbana's commanding victory.

The Tigers now turn their attention to the regional championship, where they will face Mahomet-Seymour, a familiar foe. The two teams split their regular-season series, with Urbana winning 3-1 in their first encounter on September 7, but falling 1-0 in the rematch on September 30. Mahomet-Seymour's defensive improvement in the second meeting will be a key storyline heading into the final.

Urbana, which finished 6th in the Big Twelve Conference with a 4-5-1 record, will look to continue its postseason momentum as it chases a regional title.

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Urbana Tigers soccer, Class 2A regional semifinal, Urbana vs Danville soccer, Mahomet-Seymour regional final, high school soccer playoffs

Photo Gallery | University High beats Danville 7-0 at Showcase

CHAMPAIGN - University High's Annalise Williams and Danville's Alexsa Foley get physical while trying to gain control of the ball during second-half action at the 2nd Annual Girls Soccer Showcase on Sunday. The Illineks scored four goals in the first half and three in the second to shutout the Vikings, 7-0. See 18 more photos from the non-conference game below.

Photos: Sentinel/Clark Brooks

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Uni-High rolls over Danville Vikings, 7-0

CHAMPAIGN - Cali Cooper dribbles the ball down the field at U of I's Demirjian Park unopposed during University High's match against Danville on Sunday at the 2nd Annual Girls Soccer Showcase. Cooper buried four goals in the first half to help lead the Illineks past Danville in a 7-0 shutout. See more photos from the game here.

Photo: Sentinel/Clark Brooks