Whitman and Leonardtown boys advance to 4A soccer final with tight victories - The Washington Post

Whitman and Leonardtown boys advance to 4A soccer final with tight victories - The Washington Post

But his teammates had chosen him to take this kick, and that had given him confidence and calm. He stepped up to the ball and sent it home, handing Whitman a 4-3 overtime victory.

“That was a good soccer game,” Vikings Coach Dave Greene said. “When you play a really, really good team like that, this happens.”

Whitman played a strong first half and seemed to be in control after Harmond Cohen’s goal gave it a 2-1 lead early in the second. But with less than 10 minutes remaining, Wootton broke through. It tied the game at two and then took a 3-2 lead 30 seconds later on a stunning half volley from senior Francis Meyer.

Whitman responded in kind two minutes later, forcing the ball into the net from a scrum in front of goal. In double overtime, sophomore Hugo Barnes drew a penalty in the box, setting up Vogel’s trip to the spot.

“I kept telling myself not to get nervous,” Vogel said. “I was surprised at how collected I felt.”

The Vikings (16-1-1) are headed back to the 4A championship after capturing last year’s title. Wootton (14-2-0) had been the strongest adversary this season, testing Whitman in a 1-0 regular season match and then again Saturday night. But the Vikings remain on top of the local soccer scene, having not lost to an area team since Halloween 2017.

Leonardtown advances to 4A final

The Leonardtown boys’ soccer offense has been near perfect this season. As the Raiders have stormed through Southern Maryland play and the postseason, their scoring attack has been balanced, consistent and immensely productive. Entering the Maryland 4A semifinal, 17 Raiders had combined to score 88 goals in 18 games.

But on Saturday. Leonardtown showed a different side in a 1-0 win over Arundel. After senior defender Garrett Bridgwater gave his team a lead before halftime, the No. 4 Raiders survived a tight second half with stingy defense and discipline.

“I love playing in tense games,” Bridgwater said. “Granted, I would love to win easily. But these tense games are a lot of fun.”

Bridgwater’s goal came on a header in the 17th minute, as he found an opening in a mosh of defenders and put his head on a lofted cross.

“He read the play well,” Raiders Coach Rob Hor said. “Kind of like he does as a defender, he sees the whole field. He understands the game. This time he just read the play, knew where the ball was going and got there before everyone else.”

The Raiders, winners of four consecutive Southern Maryland Athletic Conference championships, will be making their first state championship appearance in program history. They will enter the game with a 19-0-0 record.

“We need to go back home, watch film, work hard and hope to play our game,” Bridgwater said. “Because if we do, we can be state champions.”

2019-11-10 03:15:00Z
https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/whitman-and-leonardtown-advance-to-4a-soccer-finals-with-tight-victories/2019/11/09/635c0d98-0293-11ea-8501-2a7123a38c58_story.html

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