By John Shifflett / ScrimmagePlay.com contributor
Charlottesville High girls’ soccer coach Fernando Opere is pretty straightforward with what he expects from his team in the postseason.
“We should be playing beautiful soccer right now,” he said.
The Black Knights’ performance was certainly a thing of beauty Monday as they cruised to a 9-1 win over John Handley in the Region II quarterfinals. Charlottesville dominated from whistle to whistle on its home field, outshooting the Judges 46-6.
“I thought it would be a little more competitive,” said Opere, whose team showed no ill effects from a penalty-kick loss to Western Albemarle in the Jefferson District tournament championship game.
Not even close.
The Black Knights’ offense was firing on all cylinders from the get-go. Charlottesville immediately began to get shots on goal and had a shot hit the post just one minute into the game. Freshman Kelsey Brownrigg got CHS on the board at the 34:17 mark when she took a crossing pass from Gardner Allen and fired it past Handley goalkeeper Holly Ogilvie.
Brownrigg’s tally helped set off a freshman scoring barrage for CHS. Abigail Intolubbe-Chmil finished with three goals for the Black Knights while fellow freshman Althea Pickering netting two goals for CHS.
“One thing that is hard to get on a soccer team is strikers,” Opere said. “Being a striker is one of those things where you either have it or you don’t. Those two girls (Intolubbe-Chmil and Pickering) are natural strikers. It’s amazing that they are only freshmen.”
Junior Ellie Von Storch had a pair of goals and Julia Bray added two assists for Charlottesville, which led 5-0 at halftime.
While the newcomers were doing the scoring, Charlottesville’s senior-laden defense made sure that the Judges didn’t have a chance to respond. Goalkeeper Emily Thomas barely broke a sweat.
“We basically have a senior class on defense,” said Opere, who has five seniors on the roster. None of them are forwards. “They have learned how to (play defense). They are strong and they are smart.”
Charlottesville’s victory sets up a semifinal showdown with Broad Run on Wednesday night.
“This is a powerhouse,” said Opere of the Spartans’ program. “We are going to have to play our best to beat them.”
Playing the game at home won’t hurt, either.
“It’s going to be 90 degrees and they have to make that long bus ride from Northern Virginia,” Opere said. “Maybe that will have an effect. I am glad we are playing at home.”
