La Salle Boys Soccer weathered the Storm at the OSAA 5A Soccer State Championship on November 16, claiming a 2-1 victory over the #1 Ranked Summit Storm and emerging with their third state title in the past four postseasons. This was a hard-fought triumph for the Falcons, who had lost to Summit in the 2023 semifinals. This year, the team left their mark on the field during what senior Vance Sheffield called “80 minutes of pure heart.”

With the game tied and less than two minutes on the clock, senior Conor Garvey clinched the win with a penalty kick, his second in the game due to fouls drawn by Sheffield. “I wasn’t feeling confident in taking it and I thought I would pass it on,” Sheffield told the Portland Tribune. “When you get fouled, a lot of emotions are going through you, you’re injured, everything else. My guy (Garvey), I trusted in him, that’s my guy, I’ve been with him since sophomore year. All the trust in the world in him.”

This trust ultimately led to the Falcon’s victory; finishing the match with 11 shots, five on goal, and a 13-5-1 season record. Sheffield also left the field with 102 career goals, achieving a personal goal and ranking him the second highest-scoring male high school soccer player in Oregon history. 

Their eighth state championship and third under coach Monte Hawkins, the Boys Soccer Program is no stranger to success. This title, though, is especially sweet. “It’s surreal, all the running, all the hard work, the rough preseason, we came back and we’re here. State champs,” Garvey told the Portland Tribune. “This group had grit. Coming into the season, I had my doubts. Just seeing the team develop, everyone is a family here, we got each other’s back. It’s great to see us come together like this.”

Congratulations to La Salle Boys Soccer on their title as OSAA 5A State Champions, and to seniors Adam Clem, Quentin Torbert, Vance Sheffield, Rylan De Souza, Jeff Boknecht, and Conor Garvey on an incredible finale to their high school soccer careers!