By Curt Herron

Just as its season was getting underway, Columbia suffered a tragic blow. Sophomore defender Crawford Bryant died in a car accident Sept. 1. 

The team continues to honor Crawford by wearing his number 5 on their arms, and placing his jersey and cleats on the bench during matches. 

The Eagles started the season with losses to Belleville West and two teams from Louisville, Ky.

Since Sept. 4, Columbia has gone 24-0-1, with the lone non-victory a 1-1 draw with Chaminade (Mo.) Sept. 26. The team enters its second-straight trip to the semifinals with a 24-3-1 record.

Coach Jeremy Bridges' Eagles won their last eight matches in the regular-season and have outscored opponents 19-4 in five postseason wins for 13-straight victories as they head to a 5:30 p.m. meeting Thursday (Nov. 7) against first-time Final Four member Cristo Rey (20-4-2). The winner plays University (Normal) or Mendota in Saturday's 2:30 p.m. championship match. The third place match is set for 11:30 a.m. Friday.

Bridges, who's in his fourth season as the school's head coach and has a 70-22-8 record, led a team that went 18-4-4 last season to third place after falling 2-0 to University (Normal) in the semifinals. The Eagles won their final game of the season 3-0 over Peoria Christian.

This is the school's fourth appearance at the state tournament’s final weekend. It won the IHSA championship in 2014 under Jason Mathenia and took third place in its first state trip in 2010 under Shawn Hewitt. Bridges also led Columbia's girls to the 2019 IHSA A championship with a 4-0 title win over North Shore Country Day to cap a 27-2-1 season.

The Eagles coach started Life Community Church in 2011 in Columbia. He and wife Kelly, the parents of six, are the lead pastors there. He joined the boys program as an assistant in 2012 and has been the school's girls head coach since 2016. 

He attended Granite City and was a freshman on the 1990 state title team that was the last of nine championship clubs coached there by 1998 IHSSCA Hall of Famer Gene Baker.

Bridges is assisted by Ray Baumann.

The host Eagles earned their second-straight state appearance with a 4-1 victory over Williamsville in their supersectional Nov. 2. Columbia earned the opportunity to play the quarterfinal match at home after defeating Father McGivney 3-2 in double overtime in the Murphysboro Sectional Final, which was played in Granite City on Oct. 30.

Prior to its lone draw of the season, the champions of the Cahokia Conference, whose school is located in Monroe County, had an 11-match win streak which included nine-straight shutouts to end the run. The squad features 12 seniors, three juniors, six sophomores and two freshmen.

Columbia is led offensively by senior forward Hayes VanBreusegen (33 goals, seven assists), senior defender Liam Bivins (17 goals, 10 assists), senior midfielders Micah James (16 goals, 18 assists) and Drew Elliot (10 goals, nine assists) and sophomore midfielder Luke Dewilde (15 goals, 12 assists).

In net, the Eagles utilize senior goalkeepers Brady Hemminghaus (0.46 GAA with 76 saves in 28 matches) and Brayden Keys (.26, 38, 23). Team captains are Bivins, Hemminghaus and VanBreusegen.

The five top scorers and two goalkeepers were all members of last year's third place team, as were senior defenders Sully Bonaldi and Jack Fromme, senior midfielders Tyler Darnell and Quentin Frentzel, junior defenders Max Anderson and Elliot Nelson, junior midfielder Connor Briley, sophomore forward Wyatt Etherton, sophomore defender Luke Praprotnik and sophomore midfielder Owen Wocester.

“Liam Bivins is a huge part of why we are back.” Bridge said. “He is dangerous on free kicks, great defensively and a goal-scorer."

The team will never forget the early season tragedy and forever remember their schoolmate.

"We have experienced tremendous heartache this season with the loss of a teammate on Sept. 1," Bridges said. "The boys are playing for him. He was a brother, friend and teammate.”