This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2015, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

Woods Cross • A champion often concentrates on what he did wrong instead of what went right.

That was the case Tuesday night as Skyline goalie Will Desantis was more upset about giving up a late goal to Provo than he was excited about making a game-saving stop of a Provo penalty kick in the semifinals of the Class 4A boys soccer tournament.

Desantis' heroics, coupled with goals by Hunter Kone and Brigham Jackson, gave the Eagles a 2-1 victory and a chance to defend their state championship against East on Thursday at 7 p.m. at Rio Tinto Stadium.

Kone hit a shot to the top corner of the net less than three minutes into the game to give Skyline a 1-0 lead.

But it was Desantis' save of a penalty kick by Provo's Jorge Vargas with 18:03 to play that was the key play of a physical, hard-fought game on a wet turf in a game whose start was delayed by over an hour due to a wind, lightning and hail storm.

"I just read the player and went the right way, so it was good for us," said Desantis.

The save didn't surprise Kone, who has played with Desantis for several years.

"He is the best keeper I have ever seen," said Kone. "He is a world class keeper. That was a world class save. He always has blocked PKs in practice."

When Jackson scored with 4:07 to play, Skyline and its fans began celebrating. But the celebration could have been short-lived.

Provo's Jonathan Ruvalcaba moved the Bulldogs within 2-1 on a shot with under two minutes to play that left Desantis angry after his team's big win.

"Mistakes like that one at the end for me can't happen if we want to to win the state championship," he said. "I have got to fix that. It was a free kick shot and I should have saved it. It slipped through my fingers."

Inspired, Provo put pressure on Desantis and the Skyline defense in the final seconds, but could not get the tying shot into the net.

"They kept putting the ball in our offensive third and we had a hard time clearing," said Skyline coach Shawn Kennedy. "They came out and hit us hard. Fortunately, we got away with a win in this one."

Kennedy called Desantis' save "brilliant. He read it right and got a great touch on it."

Still, according to the Skyline goalie, there is still work to be done and mistakes to be corrected if he is going to help his team defend its title Thursday.

Twitter @tribtomwharton —

Storylines

• Skyline goalie Will Desantis' save of a penalty kick proves the key play of the game

• Hunter Kone and Brigham Jackson score goals for Skyline

• Johnathan Ruvalcaba's late goal gives Provo a glimmer of hope