Gallery by Heather Belcher
Fairlea – The journey to securing home field in the Class AAA Region 3, Section 2 boys soccer tournament for Woodrow Wilson, ironically, featured road wins over three sectional foes.
Coming off of shutout wins at Oak Hill and Princeton, the Flying Eagles completed the sectional trifecta Thursday night with a 3-1 win over Greenbrier East at Spartan Stadium.
“Securing home field is very important,” Woodrow Wilson head coach Steven Laraba said. “Playing at home in the playoff is a huge advantage. No bus rides, a turf field and it is our fans there. It is always nice to be at home.”
Woodrow Wilson wasted no time grabbing the momentum when Coby Dillon knocked a loose ball into the back of the net less than three minutes into the match.
“We really wanted to set the tone early and that is exactly what we did. We talked about getting an early first goal. The momentum of that first goal really helped us through the first half,” Dillon said. “The guy tried kicking it and it hit my chest. It ricocheted right in front of the goal and I tapped it in. We knew if we pressed them hard we would get an early one.”
The visitors continued to pound the goal in the first 40 minutes only to be rejected by East keeper William “Dubya” Vickers on multiple occasions.
However, with just over four minutes remaining in the half, Woodrow Wilson scored again on a loose ball near the goal when sophomore Ali Farghaly punched one in for a 2-nil lead.
The Flying Eagles had six shots on goal on the opening half, but could only get two balls in the net.
Just when the match appeared to be going to the break with the visitors owning a two goal advantage, Greenbrier East took advantage of a Woodrow mistake.
With mere seconds left on the first-half clock, Dylan Depriest-Thompson ripped a winner just inside the far post cutting the deficit in half.
“I thought we were excellent in the first half except for the last 30 seconds. That being their only shot on goal the entire game. Our attack was fluid and dynamic,” Laraba said. “We had a series of mistakes that can cost you and they did. I thought we deserved more than two (goals) in the first half, but there keeper made some fantastic saves.”
The Spartans carried the momentum into the second half, but failed to get a shot on goal in the final 40 minutes.
“The goal was big at the moment. We made some halftime adjustments and went after them again,” Greenbrier East head coach Lucas Lemine said. “I thought we did decent. We had the bulk of the ball, but Woodrow flew around and made plays.”
The lack of shots on goal for the Spartans left Lemine frustrated after the match.
“We don’t shoot the ball. It is like the kids have been instructed not to shoot the ball. I can promise you that they have been instructed to shoot,” Lemine said. “They always look for the perfect opportunity or perfect final ball. They are trying to share the ball, but they need to figure out when to pull the trigger.”
“We panicked in the first three minutes and gave them a goal to make it hard on ourselves,” Lemine went on to say. “It was pretty simple after that. We have up a couple of academic goals. If we kick the ball out both times we are fine, but we don’t do it.”
Laraba talked about the effect of the late first half goal on his team.
“I think the late goal in the first half affected us. I think it affected both teams. Obviously they came out with a lot of energy in the second half knowing the game was within reach,” Laraba said. “We had some trouble dealing with that. They kept the ball very well, but we dug down and still created a few things. Coby came up with a big third goal for us.”
With just over five minutes remaining in the match, Dillon once again collected a loose ball near the net and hammered it home for the 3-1 margin.
“Michael Fayiah beat his man and played a great ball in,” Dillon said. “A guy tried to clear it, but it hit me again and I finished with my right foot. Michael did a really good job there.”
Following a grueling stretch of four games in seven days, Laraba felt like the week off since the Princeton game showed at times, but earning a win was the bottom line.
“The win was what mattered tonight. I think we are physical to the ball, but we are also quick to the ball,” Laraba said. “We are a lot quicker than people realize. You just have to want to get to the ball.”
Woodrow Wilson will travel to Shady Spring Tuesday, while Greenbrier East hosts St. Albans Saturday.
