Westside football heads into the 2024 campaign looking to pull off a feat no other Class A team has in 35 years: win three-straight state championships.
The goal that put Gretna East up 6-1 over Duchesne with ten minutes left in the state title match made DeFini the all-time leader in goals scored in a single season across all classes.
“This is a special night for us at Gretna East,” said head coach Chace Hutchison. “Being able to set that standard and introduce ourselves to the state.”
It was more than a match between new crosstown rivals Gretna and Gretna East for a spot in the Metro Conference tournament championship. It was a battle between former teammates, coaches, and family.
At the Westside Invitational on Saturday, Miner posted a time of 4:47.49 in the girls’ 1600m, breaking the all-class girls state record of 4:49.3 that stood for over two decades.
Only two years removed from sporting a Bellevue West jersey, SDSU sophomore forward William Kyle III is having a special homecoming this week in Omaha.
“My freshman year we only won five games,” said senior forward Taylor Hansen. “To be sitting in this chair with this medal around my neck with my teammates, it’s just the most amazing feeling.”