Fate Not On Centreville's Side
| For the Second Consecutive Season Wildcats Are Knocked Out of State Semifinals by Cox, 1-0
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By Angela Watts
Newport News, VA -- Centreville girl's soccer Coach Warren Williams couldn't believe it was about to happen again.
Last season the Wildcats were eliminated in the Virginia Group AAA state semifinal round by Frank W. Cox when the Falcons netted the game's only goal with less than three minutes remaining in regulation. Friday evening at Christopher Newport University Cox again scored late--this time in the 72nd minute on a goal by sophomore forward Chloe Russell--for a staggeringly similar, 1-0 victory.
Cox (18-5-1) will face defending state champion Lake Braddock (16-3-2)
at 3 p.m. on Saturday in a rematch of last year's title game. Lake
Braddock advanced with a 2-1 win over Mills Godwin in the other
semifinal game.
"We had some chances late ... the ball just didn't fall for us,"
Williams said. "It really sort of stinks in the last 10 minutes to have
that happen two years in a row.
"Soccer is really a game of millimeters, and that's what it was tonight. We just couldn't get that last finishing touch in."
Centreville (16-3-3) had three consecutive corner kicks midway through
the second half, but were unable to convert against Cox junior
goalkeeper Kristin Carden, an imposing figure in the net. The
Wildcats turned up the pressure in the game's final minute, too, but
had back-to-back shots by junior forward Erika Pinto and sophomore Laura Yu were denied by Carden.
|  | Centreville sophomore goalkeeper Audrey Moore keeps a close watch against Cox.
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"With a great goalkeeper like that it is kind of hard, it's kind of intimidating," said Centreville senior forward Cate Tisinger, who will play next season for James Madison. "When you're taking your shots and on most goalkeepers they probably would have gone in it gets frustrating. But I think we could have had way more opportunities. We should have shot more."
Still, it was a remarkable run for a Centreville team that lost two All-Met players--senior midfielder Morgan Benz (knee) and freshman forward Jenna Richmond (leg) just during the quarterfinal round of the Northern Region tournament. Richmond did return against Cox, but was still limited.
"The things we went through the last three weeks of the season, losing Morgan and losing Jenna ... the kids just stepped up and absolutely did everything we asked them to do," Williams said. "As a coach if you can get as much out of your team as you can then I feel you've done a good job. It doesn't make them feel any better right now, but this is a team that over-achieved in my estimation after all the things we went through."
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