The Plano East boys soccer team poses for pictures after defeating Plano 2-1 at John Clark Stadium on Friday. Photo by David Wolman / C&S Media

By David Wolman

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PLANO – First came a Gatorade bath for first-year Plano East head boys soccer coach Justin Bailey.

Then came the words that the Panthers had been waiting to hear since 2018.

“We’re going to the playoffs,” he said.

Plano East’s players jumped up in the air to celebrate a 2-1 playoff-clinching win over Plano at Clark Stadium on Friday.

The celebration was particularly fitting for the team’s seniors, who had been fueled by previous heartbreak.

Last season, Plano East lost 4-3 to McKinney in the penultimate game of the regular season — a setback that eliminated the Panthers from playoff contention. Two years ago, Plano East won just one of its final five games, including a 4-3 loss to Marcus in the regular-season finale, and again missed out on the postseason.

When Bailey was hired as Plano East’s head coach, he came in with a plan. He wanted to build a team culture that emphasized hard work. What made Bailey’s hiring appealing was his familiarity with the players. He was an assistant coach for Plano East two years ago before serving in the same role with the Lady Panthers’ girls team. Last year, he helped lead Plano East’s girls to the postseason for the first time in 15 years. Last week, he helped guide the boys team to its first playoff berth in nearly a decade.

“It really feels like a curse broken and something that we can build into the future,” he said. “But again, this group fights hard and deserves it.”

After a one-hour delay for lightning in the area stopped the game with 12:12 remaining in the second half, Plano East faced its tensest moment of the night.

When play resumed, the score was tied 1-1. Plano East needed just nine seconds to score. A throw-in by senior Jordy Rocha was headed back into the field of play by a Panther forward. Senior midfielder Myles Dennis ran aggressively toward the ball in the middle of the field and placed a header into the back of the net for a 2-1 Panthers lead.

“He’s probably our most influential player,” Bailey said of Dennis. “He dominates everything in the central midfield, creates plays, wins tackles and he scores goals like he did tonight.”

Plano East had to rally to win the game.

Plano, which needed a victory to keep its playoff chances alive, took a 1-0 lead with 24:55 remaining in the first half after Cade Saylor scored on a breakaway.

The Panthers tied the score at 1-1 on a goal by Brandon Cazeault from the left side with just under 10 minutes remaining in the opening half.

“It’s definitely tough to recover after giving up a breakaway and getting them mentally back in the game,” Bailey said. “But our guys truly believed that they were the better team.”