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Albemarle boys soccer pulls away from Western

Photo: Ryan Yemen

The final on the scoreboard didn’t quite reflect just what a battle it was between Albemarle and Western Albemarle. Thanks to a late goal from Eliya Budugure the Patriots didn’t have to sweat out a dramatic finish as they picked up a 3-1 win on the road. But up until that moment it was a dog fight between two of the top programs in the Jefferson District.

“We asked our guys to give a little more energy, a little more intensity at the half and I really think they rose to the occasion,” said Albemarle coach Scott Jackson. “Western is super organized, plays hard and very technical. We’re pretty equal there too so we just needed that little bit of extra energy and we got it and it won us the game.”

Starts were the Patriots forte on Saturday. In the first five minutes of play Albemarle came out swinging, applying early pressure and getting a top-shelf goal from Michael Vaughn to take an early lead.

The Warriors were able to recover though, after plenty of back-and-forth, Western earned a duo of free kicks deep in Albemarle territory. While the Patriots defense snuffed out the first kick, the second took its toll as Western’s Gabe Nafzinger was able to clean up the scrum and tuck in a shot to make it 1-1 with just under 15 minutes until the break.

“When we attack we can do some great things,” said Western coach Milo Oakland. “Our guys have a ton of skill, grit and heart but we’ve still got to learn how to use it all.”

Out of halftime, Albemarle wasted little time getting back out in front. Five minutes into the second half Daniel Starr was able to break loose and find an opening by the left post to make it 2-1.

“We just had to keep our composure,” Starr said. “We were having problems with our emotions so we just had to calm down and wait for the right opportunities and finish them.”

The next 34 minutes saw both defenses rise to the occasion. The Patriots continued to apply pressure, particularly on fast breaks and the Warriors had some of their best offensive sets in the final ten minutes of play. Western had a trio of headers nearly wind up being equalizers with Jed Strickland and Ryan Ingram both just missing the net and then Ingram having another stopped by Albemarle keeper Anthony Geremia.

“We might have been out played but I don’t think we were dominated,” said Western coach Milo Oakland. “We got outplayed at the center-mid and so that was the story of the game for us. We’ve been talking about it that we’ve learned more in these two losses than any of our wins. We’ve been able to indentify our problems.”

With a minute left, Budugure delivered the final nail in the coffin when he converted after a misplayed ball by the Warriors to make it 3-1.

“This was the first big win that we feel we really get to own,” Jackson said. “We lost so many guys last year and I’m excited for all the kids. They worked this one out.”

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