Goochland soccer team feels confident entering home playo game

ROBBY FLETCHER Sports Editor

The postseason mentality of “win or go home” has finally entered the minds of the Goochland boys soccer team, who closed out the regular season with a 2-1 win over Orange County and a nail biting 2-2 tie against Albemarle.

The Bulldogs, now 7-8-1 on the season, earned a home playo game for their e orts, which sets up a rematch against the William

Monroe Dragons on Thursday, May 25. After starting the season 4-0, it was a tight 2-1 loss to the Dragons — headlined by a late penalty kick — that killed their winning streak to start the season, but Goochland head coach Leon Williams says his team is a more confident unit since that last meeting.

“We’re better than we were back in March. We’re better than we were last week,” he said. “But

I expect that William Monroe has improved since March as well. We’re preparing as if it’s a new team.”

Williams says the team’s midfield is playing more direct and distributing faster, while his goalie Braedon McKeown is playing more assertive and confident patrolling the box, which have both helped the attack prosper over the back half of the season.

That was evident throughout most of the Albemarle game, which Goochland led 2-0 with less than 10 minutes remaining after long-distance strikes from seniors Drew Meiller and Conner Doersch. Albemarle, who is second in the district with a 11-2-6 record, was able to fight back late with a goal in the 73rd minute and ultimately tie the game in the final seconds o a mad scramble in the box after a quick free kick caught Goochland’s defense by surprise.

Despite not holding onto that win, it was a positive result against a top opponent out of the Je erson, and another game to point to that shows the team has the talent to battle with anyone in the region.

Against William Monroe, the Bulldogs are hoping for a packed house on their home turf, as they look to keep their season alive and get some revenge from an earlyseason loss in the process.