By Greg Young
Annandale High School School, DigitalSports Intern
** Look below the story to find two separate video players filled with dozens of highlights from both of Monday’s Northern Region semifinal games.**
Chantilly’s motto for the year, “One more!” may have to be adjusted slightly.
Although the basic point remains — that the Chargers want to get one more ground ball, one more hit, one more shot and one more goal then their opponents — the phrase does not fully encompass Chantilly’s dominance this season. That’s because the Chargers have gotten several more ground balls, hits, shots and goals then its opponents all season.
That remained true Monday night as Chantilly continued its complete romp through the Northern Region tournament with a 13-3 win over Westfield in the second half of a Northern Region semifinal doubleheader at tournament host South County.
The Chargers dominated the Bulldogs from the start, opening with a 9-0 run that spanned all but a minute of the first half. Senior attack Kevin O’Neill did the brunt of the damage, registering a hat-trick midway through the first quarter and finishing with a game-high five goals. Chantilly also got a pair of scores from senior attack Joseph Fratter and senior midfielder Ian Mills.
“We wanted to come out with a purpose,” said Chargers’ Coach Kevin Broderick. “Our offense executed very well today.”
Meanwhile, in the matinée game, Oakton rallied from a two-goal deficit at half time to defeat Annandale, 12-6.
“Our motto is [to] have heart and hustle … and we had no hustle in the first half,” Oakton Coach Tony Gray said. “In the second half, we picked up the intensity.”
The Cougars were led offensively by senior attack James McClellan with three goals while senior midfielder Will Harris and Rob Koster added two goal a piece.
“A big part [of the second half run] was the defense,” Harris said. “I have to give the second half to them.”
With the wins, Oakton and Chantilly advance to the Northern Region championship game at 7 p.m. Wednesday at South County. At stake — in additional to the region crown — is the No. 1 and No. 2 seeds in the upcoming Virginia AAA state tournament.
Chantilly, which remains undefeated on the season, defeated Oakton, 9-3, in their lone regular-season meeting and again, 9-7, last week in the Concorde District title game. That second meeting proved the Chargers narrowest margin-of-victory this season.
“We need to play our game and execute very well,” Broderick said. “We need to come out early and execute well.”
Annandale and Westfield, meanwhile, will also square off in the consolation match on Wednesday at Lake Braddock. The winner will earn the region’s third — and final — berth into the state tournament field.
“We have to just focus on getting better in the ground-ball game,” Annandale Coach William Maglisceau said. “We also have to be fundamentally sound.”
Photos by Angela Watts, Managing Content Editor, DigitalSports.com
Email: awatts@digitalsports.com
GAME 1 (Oakton vs. Annandale)
GAME 2 (Westfield vs. Chantilly)
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