You can bet that Nashua North's Amos Karnuah, left, and Caua Soares de Freitas are as excited to play Nashua South in the Division I boys soccer semis today as they were duirng this moment in Friday's quarterfinal win over Portsmouth. (Telegraph photo by TOM KING)

NASHUA – It could be the biggest high school boys soccer game in almost 30 years.

When Nashua High School North and South take the field at Stellos Stadium tonight, the stakes will be high as the winner gets a trip to Friday’s Division I state championship game.

North and South played in the first round of last year’s state tourney, but in a year clouded by the pandemic with a regional setup and a limited number of fans from only one school allowed, the drama wasn’t really evident.

But this will be different, as it’s a state semifinal and the stadium should be packed for the 6:15 kickoff. It seems the last time two city high school boys soccer teams met in a tournament game of this magnitude, the unified Nashua beat Bishop Guertin 1-0 in the 1993 Class L championship game in four overtimes in Concord.

“It’s good for Nashua,” Nashua South coach Tom Bellen said after his top seed, 16-0-1 team won with seven seconds left in double over time over Exeter Friday night to set up this game. “Good for (North), I’m glad we get a hometown semifinals at our stadium. It’ll be a good game, a fun game.”

The two teams played a 1-0 game back on Sept. 23 during the Battle of the Bridge week, with South coming out on top. North, as the 12th seed, wasn’t expected to be here, but the Titans behind players such as Sammy Paintsill, Preston Thompson, Amos Karnuah, Arthur Santos (game winner in the quarters) and the ever dangerous striker Caua De Freitas beat Concord 1-0 in the quarters and Santos scored with just under five minutes remaining to clip Portsmouth,2-1, at Stellos on Friday in the quarters.

“Everything’s starting to fall into place,” North coach Josh Downing said. “We’ve been there the whole time. Those nine losses, most were one-goal games, and a couple games that we should’ve won. But now we’re there.

“South’s a quality team, I love their play, I know them all on a personal level. Tom’s a good guy.”

“North is coming into their own,” Bellen said. “It’s always tough to play a rivalry game, especially if you’ve beat them once this year and a couple times last two years. They want that win. Every game is difficult. Making that a rivalry game makes it that much more difficult.”

The Panthers, who have received national accolades, were expected to be here after the way they played in the regular season. They have tough scorers such as juniors Jadie Bomfim, Sammy Hadouche and Rory Olsen, just to name a few, plus dangerous sophomore Santiago Somorrostro and senior Max Lopez. Lopez’s freshman brother, Leonel, is another reason this game is happening as he made a game saving play to help out his keeper, Leo Kopicko, the other night.

If this game is as close as that one, fans will be on their feet all night.

“Preston’s always tough, and they’re just gritty,” Bellen said. “Sam, Amos, Caua – they’re all very solid, very good.

“Listen, I think we’re the better team, but we’ve got to play the full 80 minutes.”

This game guarantees a Nashua team will be in the Division I final at Stellos on Friday. In the 4 p.m. semi today, No. 3 Hanover will take on No. 2 Manchester Central.

And then, it will be time for some soccer history.

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