Going into last week’s match, things had to go perfectly for the Fountain Hills High School boys soccer team to earn a trip to the state tournament but, unfortunately, things did not go according to plan.

The Falcons faced off against Horizon Honors on Jan. 29 and lost the match 4-0, putting an end to the regular season and dashing Fountain Hills’ hopes of getting into the playoffs.

Heading into the match, head coach Matt Pugliano and his team knew that the stakes were high.

“We knew we had to win in order to make the playoffs,” Pugliano said. “I felt we were very prepared when it came to knowing what our opponent would do on the attack and how to penetrate their defense.

“Unfortunately, we also had to play perfectly if we wanted to be successful. We did not execute as well as we needed to in order to get anything done.”

Horizon Honors’ offensive attack came about halfway in the first half with a goal off a corner kick.

“I felt we had a chance to come back at that point,” Pugliano said. “But a couple miscues in the back led to two more Horizon Honors goals. The boys played hard throughout the game, but it just wasn't meant to be.”

Pugliano pointed to senior Nick Knowles’ effort as a highlight from the season-ending showdown.