NILES, Illinois — The Knights varsity soccer team advanced to the IHSA 1A Regional championship game following a 2-0 win over Christian Heritage Academy Saturday afternoon in Waukegan.

The Knights took a 1-0 lead after a smooth ball into the box from forward Jacob Klatt made its way to the left midfielder Paul Masaka, who was able to curl the ball past the goalkeeper's left-hand side into the back of the net.

The score soon doubled to 2-0 in the second half following a dominant stretch of offensive play for the Knights. Following a throw in from Emilio Borquez into the box, Blake Kaczynski headed the ball in the direction of Linus Coleman, who was alone in the middle of the box and able to place it low to the left of the keeper.

The Knights can now look ahead to a championship matchup with the winner of Cristo Rey St. Martin vs. Rochelle Zell. Head coach Alvaro Vargas says the message to his team will remain consistent.

"Moving forward to the regional championship game, the message is the same we have had for a couple of weeks: play physical, win 50-50 challenges, play simple and open up the field," Vargas said. "They know that some of our best games and goals this season have come from our ability to dominate possession and tire teams out."

With a regional plaque on the line, Vargas says limiting mistakes against what's sure to be a good opponent is critical.

"To walk away with a championship, we have to avoid defensive mistakes due to miscommunication and be clinical in our finishing."

The Regional final will take place Wednesday, October 18 at 6:00 p.m. in Waukegan. The winner will advance to the IHSA 1A Sectional at Marine Leadership Academy in Chicago next Friday.