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SALINA – It was a much different outing this time around, but Hays High hung tough and beat Salina South for the second time in 10 days Thursday.
In a physical contest that saw numerous fouls called, the Indian boys' soccer team outlasted the Cougars 4-3 in the semifinals of the Salina South Invitational.
The victory - HHS' fourth straight after a 1-1 draw in the season opener - moved the Indians into Saturday's 4 p.m. championship match at Salina Stadium.
There, they will meet up with Topeka West, which beat Junction City 5-1 in Thursday's other semifinal match. Topeka West (3-0) edged Hays High 1-0 in last year's semis of the Salina Invitational and went on to win the tourney title.
Salina South looked like a different team in its tournament than the one that fell 9-1 to Hays High last week, as the Cougars jumped out to a 3-2 halftime lead over the Indians Thursday.
But HHS senior Ivan Maldonado scored two of his three goals after intermission, and the Indian defense held Salina South scoreless the rest of the way to preserve the win.
The other HHS goal was scored by senior Brecken Otte, who also finished with an assist, while senior goalkeeper Cedric Durr recorded seven saves.
Saturday's championship matchup will feature two offensive standouts in HHS' Maldonado and Topeka West junior Valentin Del Real.
Maldonado has recorded hat tricks in both games of the tournament, while Del Real has seven goals through his first two tourney games.