Dorian Zavala is an ASU Cronkite School of Journalism student assigned to cover Saguaro High School for AZPreps365.com.

The No. 2 ranked Saguaro Sabercats defeated the No. 15 ranked Tempe Buffaloes 6-1 Tuesday. Led by senior forward Jack Dunlop, the Sabercats were able to advance to the 4A quarterfinals. 

It was a cold, windy day, and the weather did not improve as kickoff came around. The boys, however, kept the weather from deterring them from playing through it.

"We moved the ball out there really well even though it was a slippery surface and it was just fun playing out there for one another all while looking to advance to the next round," said senior midfielder Brandon Stafford.

Saguaro took little time to score. In the first five minutes, senior striker Bronson Smith received a pass from outside the box, ripping it passed the Buffaloes goalie, putting the Sabercats up 1-0.

A couple of minutes later, Stafford would head in a free kick pass from outside the box, adding to Saguaro's lead.

"It was a great ball from Tony ... I swooped into the near post and just put a little flick on it and went passed the keeper … just an awesome pass by Tony," said Stafford.

The Buffaloes answered with a goal of their own in the 10th minute of the first half by senior Dom Soto. It was the only score that the Buffaloes were able to tack on. 

Saguaro headed to the locker room with a 3-1 lead and looked to add more in the second half.

It didn't take long for Saguaro to open the scoring in the second half as senior forward Jack Dunlop put one in the back of the net just minutes into the second half.

"From the very start we were out here and everyone was locked in, the energy was there we all felt it and even though the surface was slick our passes were on point," said Dunlop.

Dunlop and senior forward Nicolo Tosi added two more goals in the second half, ultimately cementing their place in the tournament's next round.

"We stepped up our game totally and I feel like we're going to carry this into our next three games," said Dunlop.

Coach Nagui Sabbagh had his team ready for this game but also acknowledged that the game could have been cleaner, but due to the weather and slick surface, the team did what they could and pulled out the victory.

"We had a lot of energy, they felt like they wanted to come out and play hard … it was unfortunate for both teams to play on a surface like this made soccer pretty ugly … at the end of the day we came out and we finished off opportunities and defended well," said Sabbagh.

The Sabercats' next game will be Saturday, Feb. 18, as they host the Walden Grove Red Wolves in the quarterfinals.