Calvert Hall's Bryan Bugarin, J. J. Kremer and Mike Barger were sophomores when John Carroll dethroned the Cardinals as Maryland Scholastic Association A Conference soccer champions two years ago.
The Cardinals finished that season 6-8-1. It was one of just two times Calvert Hall did not win the MSA A tournament crown.
Yesterday, the senior Calvert Hall tri-captains denied the visiting 14th-ranked Patriots (13-4-1) another opportunity to topple them, as the No. 2 Cardinals (16-1) won their tournament semifinal, 5-0, and tied the school record with their 13th shutout.
"For the past two years, we've just kept building," said Kremer, whose hat trick against the Patriots raised his total to 22 goals with six assists. He and Bugarin (15 goals, 13 assists) lead an attack that has scored a school-record 88 goals.
"This is the worst we've been beaten in six years, so I guess they remembered," said 14th-year John Carroll coach John Hughes, whose Patriots lost, 1-0, to the Cardinals in last year's quarterfinals.
Hughes has beaten Calvert Hall coach Bill Karpovich three times in 18 tries.
"I think we were a little awe-struck, and we could never get going," said Hughes, whose Patriots lost in the 1987 championship game, 2-0, to Calvert Hall, and were eliminated, 4-3, by Archbishop Curley in the 1988 semifinals.
"They were excellent," said Hughes, whose Patriots were 9-6-1 last year. "They just moved the ball so well. We're not as strong a team as they were, and I think they'll win it all."
Bugarin's long throw-in resulted in Adam Eagan's header for his fifth goal of the season and a 1-0 lead just 15 minutes into the game. Kremer scored the next two goals unassisted for a 3-0 halftime lead.
The Patriots, who were outshot, 25-6 for the game, missed two good chances to score.
Cardinals keeper Larry Rohleder (three saves) tipped Frank Sweeney's first-half shot over the crossbar and -- just after Kremer had given the Cardinals a 4-0 lead late in the second half -- Bill Ashman shanked his penalty kick high over the goal.
Mike Dempsey scored with six minutes remaining for the final margin.