HUNTSVILLE – Tanner High School built a 2-0 lead in the first 42 minutes of its Class 1A/3A State Boys’ Soccer Championships semifinal match with Westminster-Oak Mountain thanks to some precision passing on offense.

The Rattlers of Coach Matt Smith relied on its pressing teamwork on defense, however, to hold off a tenacious comeback effort by the Knights in the final two minutes to preserve a 2-1 win.

Tanner (21-5-0) built its early lead on goals by Randy Cortes and Moises Parra at 32:05 and 42:08, respectively. Both scores were set up by sharp passes from Jorge Mendoza and Aiden Gamble.

Westminster-Oak Mountain (11-10-2), coached by Cody Baxter, caught fire in the final two minutes – driving the ball downfield quickly with Aiden Gamble setting up Charlie Krulak for a tap-in goal with 1:47 remaining. The Knights move quickly again to nail another goal 25 seconds later, but an offsides penalty nullified the goal.

Tanner was then able to run out the time to seal the win.

The Rattlers will face St. Luke’s Episcopal in the 1A/3A boys’ finals Saturday at 3 p.m. All 10 state championship matches will be played Saturday at John Hunt Park and will be live-streamed over the NFHS Network’s subscriber-based live-streaming platform.