By John Goolsby, Prep Sports Editor
MOODY – The Shades Valley boys soccer team won the 2024 MIST Tournament with a 3-2 win over Moody Saturday evening.
Eddy Suazo, Kevin Lopez, and Dallas Shanks had goals in the Mounties’ win against the Blue Devils.
Shades Valley began the tournament with a 2-1 victory over Mortimer Jordan Friday and defeated St. Clair County 6-1 Saturday.
The Mounties are hitting their stride late in the season and have won four consecutive games.
“These kids have been through so much adversity and continue to overcome it repeatedly,” said head coach Antwan Peake.
“It took us a while to get the chemistry going but right now, we believe we can compete with anyone in the state.”
“They didn’t believe, but God did,” Peake said.
Peake points to a player’s only meeting at a restaurant as a catalyst for turning the season around.
“The kids got together on their own to bond, and they’ve been clicking every since,” he said.
The Mounties are 2-4 in 6A Region 10 play with two wins over Woodlawn and four losses to number four ranked Mountain Brook and number five Pell City.
Along with the player’s renewed focus, Peake credits assistant coach Jeremy Nelson for being instrumental in Valley’s late-season turnaround.
The Mounties face 6A number six ranked Gardendale on the road Tuesday night.