The road back to the state tournament in Des Moines leads the Columbus Wildcats boys’ soccer team (7-6 overall) through West Point this evening. The Wildcats battle in the semifinals of the Class 1A Substate 5 against the 16th ranked Holy Trinity Catholic Crusaders (12-5 overall).

These two teams met in the regular season with Holy Trinity winning the battle 2-0. Columbus junior goal keeper Carter Colby made four saves in the setback on April 28.

The Wildcats offense has been led by sophomore Ruben Paz, who has connected on 17 goals so far this spring. Paz is second in the Southeast Iowa Super Conference North in goals scored, trailing Highland senior Bryan Garica with 24 goals.

The Wildcats are in search of back-to-back appearance in the state tournament. Columbus earned their first ever trip to the state tournament last spring.

Tonight’s Class 1A Substate 5 semifinal game kicks off at 7 p.m. in West Point.