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Maple Mountain players pose with the runner-up trophy following their 1-0 double overtime loss to Bountiful on Friday. May 22, 2026

Brandon Gurney, Provo Daily Herald

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Maple Mountain defenders Ethan Sabee and Corbin Gardner converge to take the ball away from Bountiful during their team's 1-0 double overtime loss on Friday. May 22, 2026

Brandon Gurney, Provo Daily Herald

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Maple Mountain's Ethan Sabee works his way around a Bountiful defender during the 5A state championship on Friday. May 22, 2026

Brandon Gurney, Provo Daily Herald

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Maple Mountain's Carter Egbert fires a shot at goal during his team's double overtime loss to Bountiful May 22, 2026

Brandon Gurney, Provo Daily Herald

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A golden goal scored by Bountiful as time was wounding down in the second overtime period dramatically put an end to Maple Mountain’s otherwise remarkable season on Friday.

The venue was the 5A boys state championship with the No. 6 Golden Eagles advancing father than just about everyone predicted prior to the tournament. But a penalty drawn within the penalty box by the Redhawks with under a minute remaining effectively ended Maple Mountain’s chances as the ensuing PK hit the back of the net, leaving all involved on the Golden Eagle’s side understandably devasted.

“Unfortunately a game like that came down to (penalty), and they put it away very well,” said Maple Mountain coach Lincoln Snyder.

The game ended a flat out grudge match being played out at Zions Bank Stadium with either team unwilling to yield even the slightest of breathing room. Several scoring opportunities were missed by both sides throughout the game’s almost 100 minutes of play in the manner it should be during a state championship match.

“Man, it was it was it was a battle out there,” Snyder described. “If anyone watches the game, they’re they’re clearly going to see that. It was just Bountiful and us, we were just getting after it … Either team could have taken it for a lot of the game. Unfortunately, we had a lot of chances and they didn’t come together. A lot of our guys were battling injuries, as I’m sure probably Bountiful was, too.”

Of course defense was the shining star on both ends with Maple Mountain’s defensive battery coming up big time and again, and perhaps particularly during the first half of play.

“There’s a reason why it was zeros for 98 minutes, or 99 minutes, and they played one heck of a game,” Snyder assessed. “With so much pressure when Bountiful stepped, they had tons of guys coming forward and our center backs Wyatt Witt and Palmer Crowshaw were dialed in the entire game. Ethan Antonito was making save after save after save, and Bountiful made us work for it … We just couldn’t get a goal to help support.”

Most of the prime scoring chances belonged to Bountiful through the first 80 minutes of regulation play before the Golden Eagles swung things their way throughout both overtime periods, for the most part.

“It might be conditioning, but I think a lot of it was a little bit of depth,” Snyder said of his team’s overtime surge. “I know we were using a little bit more guys than Bountiful was because we know we can. We can trust them. We can rely on them. So you could see the field opening a bit more as we were kind of tiring them out, wearing them down.”

As for the season, Maple Mountain will look back with pride on its deep tournament run despite the sting accompanied with coming just that close to winning it all.

“For the boys, the hours they put in, the spending time together, building the chemistry between each other, really it means the world that we could have this vision of whatever we do, we win or we lose as a team. I think that’s what brought us this far. And obviously, tough result, but, you know what? The boys did it for each other and I’m so proud of that.”