Controversial Finish Preserves No. 1 Taft's 47-Match Unbeaten Streak

Prep Top 15 No. 8 Choate Rosemary Hall appeared to score at the end of the match but the goal came a split second after the whistle, leaving Choate and Taft deadlocked in a scoreless match

A controversial ending marred a double overtime draw between national soccer powers Choate Rosemary and Taft, Wednesday in Connecticut. | Jim Stout

It literally was a split second between a team’s biggest win of the year and another tie.

In a video circulating in the high school soccer community, the center official whistled the game over just as a shot by Choate Rosemary Hall (Conn.) senior Wisdom Humalie found the net. Had it counted, it would have given Choate a victory over national No. 1 Taft School (Conn.) and handed Taft its first loss since 2024

Instead, the match between these New England Preparatory School Athletic Council powers ended in a scoreless tie Wednesday afternoon at Choate in Wallingford, Conn.

The video shows Choate senior Tofick Sheikh on the left wing, outrunning his defender before playing the ball to Humalie, who one-times it into the goal just as the whistle sounds. Choate players storm the field, at first in likely celebration, then in stunned reaction to the whistle, as several Choate players converge on the official.

“We play under modified NCAA rules,” said longtime Choate coach Charlie Fuentes. “The clock for us stops at 2 minutes, and the ref has it on the field. It is up to their discretion to decide when to end it. Some refs will see the attack out. But according to the ref, he chose to stick to exactly 2 minutes, which is why he blew the whistle. Not much more of an explanation beyond that.”

Both teams enter the game with undefeated records – Taft at 11-0-2 and Choate at 9-0-6. Taft is the No. 1 team in the High School on SI Prep Top 15 and has held that ranking most of the season. Chaote, meanwhile, is ranked No. 8. 

Taft’s 11-0-3 record extends the team’s undefeated streak to 47 matches, the longest among prep schools. Taft has not lost since a 2-1 setback to Berkshire School (Mass.) on Oct. 9, 2024. Since then, Taft has gone 42-0-5, including back-to-back NEPSAC A titles (2024 and 2025).

Choate, meanwhile, is 9-0-7 and has a 16-match unbeaten streak, the second-longest active among NEPSAC A and B programs. The team recently knocked off former No. 4 Northfield Mount Hermon (Mass.) but also has been held to ties by five teams outside the Prep Top 15.

Taft returns to action Saturday against Prep Top 15 No. 5 Loomis Chaffee (Conn.), which is 12-1-2 and riding a 14-match unbeaten streak. Choate next faces Avon Old Farms (Conn.), which is among the honorable mentions just outside the Prep Top 15.

Wednesday's finish could prompt further discussion about whether NEPSAC should adopt a scoreboard-clock system, similar to the NCAA, or continue leaving the decision on when to end a match to the discretion of the referee.

“Certainly, something for us to think about as a league in the future,” Fuentes said.