By Bryan Rothamel/FlucoBlog.com
After 90 minutes of back and forth play, the Fluvanna and Western Albemarle boys’ soccer teams ended in a 2-2 tie Friday night.
The Flucos had a 2-0 advantage at the break but the second half quickly had a different feel as the Warriors poked and prodded trying to find a hole to exploit.
“It is a senior team we have here without 80 minutes of focus,” said Fluvanna coach Patrick Dieter. “They need 80 minutes, not 50 minutes, not 55 minutes — a complete game of focus.”
In the 46th minute, Western’s Noah Oakland took a free kick from just shy of midfield. Oakland perfectly floated the ball inside the six-yard box for Avery Walker to find the back of the net.
Oakland connected with Walker again in the 77th minute. Walker converted an Oakland corner kick for the equalizer in the waning minutes of regulation.
“To come back and tie it up against a good squad is a good effort. It is cliche, a good learning experience,” said WAHS coach Paul Rittenhouse.
The first half was all Flucos. Josue Franco struck first in 27th minute, putting a bicycle kick off of a rebound in the back of the net.
Jake Domenic ended the first half with a shot from the corner of the penalty box. After his corner kick bounced around in the box, the ball kicked out to him for a 15-yard blast.
“It is time to have a complete effort by all 11 guys for 80 minutes. We haven’t had it yet. If we don’t get it soon it is going to be an early summer. None of us want that to happen,” said Dieter.
Kai Shin played a monster game for Western in goal, recording five saves for the Warriors.
Fluvanna (6-2-1 JD) now sits in first place, one point ahead of William Monroe. Western Albemarle (4-1-4) is close behind in third place, just three points behind.
-Scrimmage Play’s Bart Isley contributed to this story
