November 6, 2026 - 10:05 pm

Arbor View boys soccer senior goalie Aaden Flores had two penalty shootout wins during the Class 5A Southern Region tournament, which helped the Aggies get the No. 1 seed in the state tournament.

So why not one more shootout effort to help Arbor View reach its first state title game?

Flores stood tall in net, and Arbor View got a gutsy performance from forward Desmond Guevara as the Aggies defeated Sparks, the North’s No. 2 seed, 3-2 on penalty kicks after the game was tied 2-2 following overtime in a 5A state semifinal Friday night at Faith Lutheran.

Arbor View will play Palo Verde (17-5-3) at noon Saturday for the 5A state title at Faith Lutheran. Palo Verde, the South’s No. 2 seed, got second-half goals from O’Brian Vera and Mateo DeCastroverde and claimed a 2-0 win over Northern champion Hug (15-3-2) in the other state semifinal late Friday.

“It’s surreal,” said Flores, with tears in his eyes. “There’s no other way to explain it. These boys, I’ve been with them forever.…