The Tippecanoe Red Devils of the Miami Valley League defeated the Revere Minutemen 1-0 to claim the
OHSAA boys Division II state soccer championship on 11/11/23 at Historic Crew Stadium in Columbus,
Ohio. Tippecanoe Head Coach Joel Slyman led the Red Devils to the title in just his first year as a head
coach.
The Revere Minutemen, hailing from Richfield and representing the Suburban-American Conference,
were wearing white. Revere came into the state final having not lost a match all season, a record of 21-
0-2. The Tippecanoe Red Devils wore red and entered the match with a 22-1-1 record. Both teams were
supported by a lively and coordinated student section throughout the match. The Red Devil student
section had red thunder sticks, and Revere students painted their chests white.
The match started just after 1pm on a chilly, cloudy day in Columbus. Revere almost struck first in the
second minute on a sliding shot off a cross that went just left. A few minutes later, Tippecanoe scored
the game’s crucial first goal.
In the tenth minute, Red Devil junior midfielder #8 Landon Haas received a pass well beyond the penalty
area and launched a shot from over 30 yards out. The long-distance shot was on target and went over
the goalkeeper’s head, into the upper right corner for the goal. Haas ran to the student section with his
arms raised and let out a triumphant roar in front of the crowd. It was an incredible moment to witness.
In the postgame press conference, Coach Slyman spoke about how the team practiced taking long range
shots to prepare for this moment.
Tippecanoe head coach Joel Slyman speaks about preparing to take a shot from a long distance. Junior midfielder Landon Haas struck from over 30 yards out to give the Red Devils a 1-0 lead in the 10th minute. It was an incredible moment!@TippecanoeAD @NEOSportsInside pic.twitter.com/QyNugWlVfn
— Joel Speyer (@nyc_buckeye) November 12, 2023
It was a magical moment for Haas, who was a ballboy on Tippecanoe’s state championship team in 2019
and runner-up in 2020. More than that, it was emotional because Haas’ father was in attendance.
Landon’s father was diagnosed with cancer less than a month ago and has been receiving treatment at
Ohio State in Columbus. Haas spoke about the importance of making the state final so his dad could be
there to watch.
“We sat in the Ohio State hospital looking down at the stadium talking about how nice it would be to play here and to bring the crowd out,” Haas said. “It was just amazing to me. It was really emotional. It was for my teammates and my dad of course,” Haas continued. “Just to score in the state championship has always been a dream. Seeing the (2019 and 2020 teams) play, I always wanted to be here and we did it.”
Tippecanoe scored an insurance goal in the 66 th minute. Sophomore forward #10 Colin Turner deflected
a low cross from senior forward and Captain #7 Caleb Ranson past Revere junior goalkeeper #0 Jake
Nations. Ransom had an assist on both Red Devil goals.
When the final seconds ticked off the clock, the celebration was on.
The Tippecanoe Red Devils players and student section celebrate the final seconds. The Red Devils are Boys Division II State Champs with a 2-0 win over the Revere Minutemen.@NEOSportsInside @TippecanoeAD pic.twitter.com/cCWgQaHH1V
— Joel Speyer (@nyc_buckeye) November 11, 2023
Revere took 20 shots on the day, five of them on target. Tippecanoe senior goalkeeper and Captain #1
Michael Jergens saved them all for the clean sheet. Five of the Red Devils’ 15 shots were on target, and
Nations made three saves.
Even though Revere took more shots, Tippecanoe was the more aggressive team. The Red Devils out-
possessed the Minutemen 52%-48% and had twice as many corner kicks 10-5. The Red Devils committed
13 fouls, three of which were yellow card offenses. Revere had eight fouls and one yellow card.
Revere head coach Nick DePompei, in his ninth year coaching the Minutemen, and Revere senior
midfielder and Captain #5 Zach Iler, reflected on the accomplishment of making it to the state final after
losing a lot of seniors from last year’s team.
Revere Minutemen head coach Nick DePompei reflects on his team after a hard-fought but disappointing loss to Tippecanoe in the Boys Division II State Championship.@NEOSportsInside @revereminutemen pic.twitter.com/BaoDQX1etc
— Joel Speyer (@nyc_buckeye) November 11, 2023
Red Devils coach Slyman reflected on his love for the team and the importance of loving each other.
Tippecanoe Red Devils head coach Joel Slyman talks about the importance of loving each other, and loving what you do, in being successful after his team defeated Revere in the OHSAA Boys Division II State Championship 2-0 at Historic Crew Stadium.@NEOSportsInside @TippecanoeAD pic.twitter.com/Trv84s3wle
— Joel Speyer (@nyc_buckeye) November 11, 2023
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