Neosho is no stranger to playing Webb City in the Class 3 District 12 final. The Wildcats earned their fourth straight district championship against the Cardinals.
"We knew coming in it's always a battle with these guys," Neosho coach James Carter said. "I have a heckuva team. We talked all year that they were going to come up against some adversity sometime. One question that we have left is 'How do we respond to that?' Well, now we know. They played great, and they played an excellent second half.
"We just had some big individual performances. It's like I said all year long with this team — it could be anybody on any given day. We are just incredible. I'm proud of them."
It was a very tightly contested first half, with Neosho having a 3-2 advantage over Webb City on shots. Senior midfielder Diego Vargas put the Wildcatson the board in the 24th minute with a header that went through the right, back side of the net for the score.
But Webb City answered nine minutes later when defender Ignatius Mathenge blasted a kick past Neosho goalkeeper Kayden Wood and into the back of the net for a 1-1 halftime score.
In the second half, Webb City took a 2-1 lead in the 56th minute when junior Gabriel Gallegos fought off pressure and fired a shot into the back of the net.
The Cardinals, who have 11 seniors, finish the year with an 8-16 record.
"I'm sure this is going to be painted as a near-upset, but all along throughout the season, we knew we deserved to be here," Webb City coach Nick Harmon said. "We 100% expected to be right there with them all night. I'm proud of my boys."