As is par for the course, Albemarle and Western Albemarle are the class of the Jefferson District in girls soccer this season, meaning Saturday night’s matchup in Crozet deserved every bit of its slot under the lights following the boys matchup. And one of them came out particularly geared for prime time.
Albemarle got a hat trick from Fizzy Gonzalez and one from Katie Schnell for a 4-0 road victory. The Patriots played suffocating defense, especially in the first half, allowing themselves to play much of the second half on cruise control on the way to the victory.
The Patriots jumped in front in the 14th minute when Gonzalez, on a tear of late, picked up a loose ball and dodged Western defenders, beating Warrior freshman keeper Bailey Wood for a 1-0 lead with a shot into the bottom left corner of the net.
Schnell doubled that lead 30 minutes in when she chased down a loose ball inside the box and put it nearly into the same spot as Gonzalez, and Albemarle took that two-goal advantage into halftime.
“[Western] is very good and they’re going to make a lot of noise in the postseason,”said Albemarle coach Amy Sherrill. “They’re incredibly tough with that possession style of soccer that they play, and it’s great to walk away with a win.”
The Warriors, who managed just one shot on goal in the first half, were able to generate some opportunities after the break, with much of the opening stages of the half being played in Western’s offensive third. But AHS goalie Ayanah Tyler-Cooper was equal to each task, keeping the Warriors scoreless. The future UNC-Wilmington Seahawk recorded four saves on the night.
“They were a wall back there.” Gonzalez said.
Meanwhile Albemarle’s offense kept humming. In the 55th minute, after a Tyler-Cooper save on a WAHS free kick, Gonzalez came out ahead of the defense again following a long pass and deftly tapped the ball past Wood to extend the Patriots’ lead to 3-0.
Gonzalez completed her hat trick with 4:20 remaining to put the icing on the cake, again breaking away from the defense and clinking the ball off the left post and softly into the back of the net.
The striker has acclimated nicely to a new school and team, having moved to the area from Myrtle Beach during the offseason.
“Fizzy has been such a great addition to our team and we’re luck to have her,” Sherrill said. “Her teammates do well to feed her the ball and she looks to feed her teammates as well. Tonight was her night.”
For the game, Albemarle outshot Western 13 to 5 and took three corners to none for the Warriors. Wood registered eight saves for Western, including a fantastic diving stop late in the second half.
The teams will lock up again on Thursday, this time at Albemarle’s home field with the Warriors looking for a measure of revenge. Before that, though, the Patriots will take on another crosstown rival in Charlottesville on Tuesday.
“We need to do what we did today even better,” Gonzalez said. “We need to keep pushing.”
Western Albemarle returns to action Monday night when it travels to Fluvanna.
