Lord Botetourt soccer teams swept season series
The Lord Botetourt soccer teams both swept the season series with wins over county rival James River last week. The LB boys took an 11-1 win over River in Buchanan while the girls won, 2-0, in Daleville.
In the boys game the Cavaliers had an 8-0 lead by the half. When it was all said and done, Michael McBane had a hat trick and Connor McBane and Drew Owens had two goals each. Also scoring for the Cavs were Bryan Day, Brett Crocker, Nathan Kinzie and Maison Puckett as LB dominated the game.
The girls game, at LB, was much closer. Hollie Martin and Kennedi VanRavestein scored goals for the Cavaliers.
The girls continued a busy week with a loss to Hidden Valley last Wednesday, 4-0, and a 4-0 win over Liberty at LB Monday. Hidden Valley is a traditional state power.
“I think we’re just as good,” said LB coach Jamie Bednarek. “We’re not used to playing on that big field and that exposed a few of our weaknesses.”
Kristyn Brogan of LB has her eye on the ball as a Liberty girl approaches the cage unimpeded. Brogan made the save to preserve the shutout in a 4-0 LB win Monday. Photo by Brian Hoffman
On Monday the girls bounced back with a 4-0 win over Liberty, as Hollie Martin broke open a scoreless tie with two goals early in the second half. Macey Tyree and Kami Meador added insurance goals and Tyree also had an assist. Kristyn Brogan was in goal for the shutout.
The win made the girls 5-1 on the season. They’ll next play at home on April 9 when Harrisonburg comes here.
The boys also lost for the first time last week, and it also took a state contender to beat them. Blacksburg, annually one of the top teams in Virginia, took a 3-0 win over the Cavaliers.
“Blacksburg is a great soccer team and has a really deep bench,” said LB coach Andrew Moore. “They controlled the flow of the game and, in the end, had a better soccer team. They are the defending state champions and Coach (Shelly) Blumenthal has done a great job developing that program.”
LB was back in action Monday, playing on the artificial pitch at Salem High School. The Cavs were clad in their lime green “alternate” jerseys and were easy to see, if nothing else, as they battled Salem to a 0-0 tie. It was the second tie of the season against the Spartans, who played LB to a 3-3 draw in Daleville.
“Against Salem we came out and played a much better soccer game,” said Moore. “We controlled the pace of the game and really controlled the midfield well. We had five or six chances to put this game away but Salem’s goalie just made some huge saves to keep them in the game. I felt like we had possession of the ball 65 percent of time and just couldn’t find the back of the net.”
Brett Crocker had a big game for LB, shutting down Salem’s Johnny Hughes. Conner McBain also played a great game in the central midfield and the whole defensive unit played strongly to keep the score tied at 0-0. Jordan Kingery had the shutout in net.
“We’ve had several kids that are either plagued by injuries or who are playing through injuries, and we will be a better team when we have everyone at 100 percent,” said Moore.
The LB boys play at Franklin County tonight, then they’re off for spring break.
James River teams take on Group AA Alleghany teams on Thursday night this week. The River boys will be home and the girls are at Alleghany.
