State Tournament
- Thread starter EdJoyce
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There will be some great games played tonight. I think all 4 should be quality, though score lines may get stacked as games play out. I don't want to make any bold predictions (because I'm terrible at it), but I will root for Arcadia. Nothing in the world against Lee, who is a safe bet honestly. Those kids from Northern Neck have to be having a blast with this though!
RE Lee may be the hands down favorite to win it all and easily knocks off the Cinderella - Arcadia, but make no mistake - major kudos to that squad for their run this season, they should be a very proud bunch . I do believe that Mason will defeat MW in a very close game.
On the other side, Giles has an easy go of it with Graham and waltzes back to Radford. Something tells me that Nelson is going to put a good foot forward today and might be able overcome the long road trip to knock off VA High. This will be the upset in today's games. Mason / MW is a coin flip in my book.
From there, Giles and RE Lee for the title and that has the makings of a dynamite 80+ mins of soccer. However, it is all just an opinion. Congrats to all 8 teams!
On the other side, Giles has an easy go of it with Graham and waltzes back to Radford. Something tells me that Nelson is going to put a good foot forward today and might be able overcome the long road trip to knock off VA High. This will be the upset in today's games. Mason / MW is a coin flip in my book.
From there, Giles and RE Lee for the title and that has the makings of a dynamite 80+ mins of soccer. However, it is all just an opinion. Congrats to all 8 teams!
Newsleader article by Patrick Hite
STAUNTON - Robert E. Lee will play Friday for a berth in the state championship.
The Leemen had little trouble with Arcadia, the Region A runner-up, beating the Firebirds 10-0 Tuesday in the Class 2 boys soccer state quarterfinals at Winston Wine Stadium.
Lee will face George Mason, a 1-0 winner over Maggie Walker, in the state semifinals Friday at Radford University. As of Tuesday night, Lee athletic director David Tibbs said the starting time hadn't been finalized. It will either be 1 p.m. or 3 p.m. at Radford's Cupp Stadium.
The game will be a rematch of Lee's 3-0 win over Mason in last Friday's Region 2B championship in Staunton.
Robert E. Lee's Alex Lightner and Arcadia's Irwin Larreinaga both compete for control of the ball.
Lee High is now also nationally ranked, jumping into Top Drawer Soccer's FAB 50 rankings at No. 8. Mason fell from No. 15 to No. 26 following the loss. Lee was previously unranked.
For those wondering, the cumulative score this season now stands at Lee High 180, opponents 1.
And as gaudy as that stat is, the lack of scoring by teams playing Lee has come through a clear focus on strong defense by everyone on the field.
"From the very beginning, we've really focused on defense starts as soon as we lose the ball wherever the ball is," Lee coach Mike Vanhoy said. "So if it's in front of their goal, then our forwards are the first defenders. If it gets by them then our midfielders are our defenders. Our job is to never let the other team get comfortable enough on the ball to be able to do anything with it."
That strategy has obviously worked very well.
The other key for Lee this year has been a balanced attack. That was displayed earlier in the day Tuesday when the all-Region 2B soccer team was announced. Lee placed six players on the first team, including Kyle Stenzel, who was named regional player of the year
"It feels good," said Stenzel of the honor. "My teammates were happy for me. I was happy."
Stenzel scored a hat trick Tuesday, scoring the first two goals of the game to put Lee up 2-0 and then adding his third goal to open the second. By that point, Lee was leading 7-0.
Stenzel’s first goal for Lee High
Marcos Sasia added the next two goals before Carter Koehn and Carson Murray gave Lee a 6-0 advantage at halftime.
Carson Murray scores to give Lee a 6-0 lead at halftime.
In addition to Stenzel, Lee got second-half scoring from Murray, Koehn and Thomas Otteni.
As Lee prepares for another game against Mason, Vanhoy said there wasn't a lot of work the team could do over the next two days.
"They're not going to learn anything from me in the next few days," he said. "It's just making sure everybody is healthy."
Mason-Walker game notes.
Very toughly fought game between two excellent teams. Mason scored at the 29 minute mark of the first half. After that it was back and forth. Walker had Mason's goal under siege for most of the second half, although Mason did have a couple of good chances go wide after breakaways. Walker hit the post about the 20 minute mark of the second half, as Mason furiously defended. It seemed the tying goal was inevitable, but somehow Mason's defense kept the ball out of the net. When the final whistle sounded both teams were exhausted.
Very toughly fought game between two excellent teams. Mason scored at the 29 minute mark of the first half. After that it was back and forth. Walker had Mason's goal under siege for most of the second half, although Mason did have a couple of good chances go wide after breakaways. Walker hit the post about the 20 minute mark of the second half, as Mason furiously defended. It seemed the tying goal was inevitable, but somehow Mason's defense kept the ball out of the net. When the final whistle sounded both teams were exhausted.
I'm going w Lee and Giles in the final and Giles by 1. Win or lose it should be a heckuva game. Unlike last year Giles has the easiest road to the finals. they have size, speed and experience. I think it's their year.
Lot's of folks not getting a lot of sleep tonight. Lots of meetings with coaches going to the wee hours. This is a wonderful time of year.
Mason 2
Lee 0
Very well played game, very even first half with both sides generating chances. Halftime score 0-0. Mason came out on fire in the second half and continuously pushed the ball into Lee's defending half. Some good passing put Mason's left mid one on one with the Lee Keeper. The shot caromed off the keepers leg and trickled in for the goal (only the second goal conceded by Lee all season). Mason continued to attack and a few minutes later their center mid launched a hard shot the Lee keeper parried away, however Mason's striker was on the spot and slotted the ball in the goal to make it 2-0.
Lee then went on the attack but kept getting frustrated by the Mason defense. Lee's best chance was a shot to the near post that somehow the Mason keeper was able to keep out. After that it was a matter of running down the clock.
Hats off to Lee. They have an amazing team and did themselves proud this season. They have only one senior, so they'll be the team to beat next year.
Lee 0
Very well played game, very even first half with both sides generating chances. Halftime score 0-0. Mason came out on fire in the second half and continuously pushed the ball into Lee's defending half. Some good passing put Mason's left mid one on one with the Lee Keeper. The shot caromed off the keepers leg and trickled in for the goal (only the second goal conceded by Lee all season). Mason continued to attack and a few minutes later their center mid launched a hard shot the Lee keeper parried away, however Mason's striker was on the spot and slotted the ball in the goal to make it 2-0.
Lee then went on the attack but kept getting frustrated by the Mason defense. Lee's best chance was a shot to the near post that somehow the Mason keeper was able to keep out. After that it was a matter of running down the clock.
Hats off to Lee. They have an amazing team and did themselves proud this season. They have only one senior, so they'll be the team to beat next year.
I agree Lee played,wonderfully. That very small roster was a factor as well. They simply slowed down much faster than Mason did in the 2nd half. GM used their reserves extremely well throughout the game.
Giles beat Va High 6-0. An extremely sloppy first half by the Spartans got much better as it went on. The Giles bench also played very well.
A fun final is on the way today!
Giles beat Va High 6-0. An extremely sloppy first half by the Spartans got much better as it went on. The Giles bench also played very well.
A fun final is on the way today!
2A State Final
George Mason 3
Giles 0
This game was much closer than the score indicates and was 0-0 at halftime. Giles had most of the play in the first half and made some excellent over the top passes to free running midfielders. One shot was stopped on the line by the Mason left back, another was saved by the Mason keeper on a one-v-one opportunity. Another attack won a penalty, however, the the Mason Keeper pushed the PK over the bar for a corner kick. This save inspired Mason the rest of the way, and likewise I think it disheartened Giles.
In the second half, in a similar fashion to the Lee semifinal, Mason came out on fire. A great cross by the Mason right mid found the left mid all alone on the left side of the area, but his shot went high. Another attack by Mason's striker led to another shot just missed. Giles couldn't get into any attacking rhythm at that point. Mason finally broke through. After winning a corner, Mason's striker at the far post powered a header into the goal. After that it was mostly Mason, who won a penalty after their striker was tripped in the area. Later another penalty was given after a hand ball. Both PKs were converted. A couple of Giles attacks were saved by the Mason keeper, preserving Mason's clean sheet through the state tournament.
Man of the match was undoubtedly the keeper, Ethan Morse. Without his clutch saves in the first half, Giles could have been ahead 2 or even 3-0.
Mason finishes the season 22-1-1, after beating what are probably the three best teams in 2A in the state tournament. They lose 5 starting seniors to graduation, but have a corps group of juniors and sophmores ready to step up next year.
George Mason 3
Giles 0
This game was much closer than the score indicates and was 0-0 at halftime. Giles had most of the play in the first half and made some excellent over the top passes to free running midfielders. One shot was stopped on the line by the Mason left back, another was saved by the Mason keeper on a one-v-one opportunity. Another attack won a penalty, however, the the Mason Keeper pushed the PK over the bar for a corner kick. This save inspired Mason the rest of the way, and likewise I think it disheartened Giles.
In the second half, in a similar fashion to the Lee semifinal, Mason came out on fire. A great cross by the Mason right mid found the left mid all alone on the left side of the area, but his shot went high. Another attack by Mason's striker led to another shot just missed. Giles couldn't get into any attacking rhythm at that point. Mason finally broke through. After winning a corner, Mason's striker at the far post powered a header into the goal. After that it was mostly Mason, who won a penalty after their striker was tripped in the area. Later another penalty was given after a hand ball. Both PKs were converted. A couple of Giles attacks were saved by the Mason keeper, preserving Mason's clean sheet through the state tournament.
Man of the match was undoubtedly the keeper, Ethan Morse. Without his clutch saves in the first half, Giles could have been ahead 2 or even 3-0.
Mason finishes the season 22-1-1, after beating what are probably the three best teams in 2A in the state tournament. They lose 5 starting seniors to graduation, but have a corps group of juniors and sophmores ready to step up next year.
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I overheard someone Friday say, "You know with a little luck, Giles could take Mason." No luck to be had Saturday. The Giles finishing had been spot on all season and it just wasn't there in the first. The other huge factor was bench play. When Mason called in reserves the level of play didn't drop much if any...not really the case for the Spartans.
The Mason defense was fantastic in the second half; hats off to them.
I am very proud of that spartan team though. Finding real soccer tactics in the West is not a common thing in 2A (and oretty rare at the other levels). They now lose 9 seniors, so it may not be quite the same team next year. However, knowing the Giles coaches, they will work to still play something resembling the beautiful game.
Congratulations to the Mustangs on their win. It was a very fun final to watch.
Now with Mason's move to 3A next season is up for grabs (Right?). Look for Maggie Walker, Lee, and Nelson to be there towards the end.
The Mason defense was fantastic in the second half; hats off to them.
I am very proud of that spartan team though. Finding real soccer tactics in the West is not a common thing in 2A (and oretty rare at the other levels). They now lose 9 seniors, so it may not be quite the same team next year. However, knowing the Giles coaches, they will work to still play something resembling the beautiful game.
Congratulations to the Mustangs on their win. It was a very fun final to watch.
Now with Mason's move to 3A next season is up for grabs (Right?). Look for Maggie Walker, Lee, and Nelson to be there towards the end.
I think Mason has one more year in 2A, then they move up.
Mason and Maggie walker move up at the same time. Lee will sit at the top with the highest enrollment in 2A.
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