Soccer

Class 4 state boys soccer semifinal: Smithfield outnumbers Chancellor

Class 4 state boys soccer semifinal: Smithfield outnumbers Chancellor

Smithfield athletic director Matt Moore crouched over a cardboard box containing the individual awards intended for Wednesday’s Class 4 state championship soccer game.

The Packers had just completed their first victory over a Chargers’ program that ended their playoff runs each season from 2016–18. Now, there was just one problem.

“No matter what happens, there’s not going to be enough,” he announced to Packers head coach Jason Henderson after taking inventory of the contents.

With a roster numbering 25 players, Smithfield used sheer numbers to best Chancellor at its own game, rotating players at will in Monday’s 3–1 semifinal victory.

They played the way we wanted to play better than us,” Chargers coach Mike Webb said. “They got us disjointed, and usually that’s us doing that to the other team. They got us out of sorts.”

Smithfield (14–0) broke out on top first when Braden Ross volleyed a shot across the face of the Chancellor net in the 14th minute. In the teams’ fifth overall meeting (one regular season, four postseason), the Packers arrived in Fredericksburg with a well-formulated approach.

Just to possess the ball,” Henderson said of his side’s game plan. “We knew there were some guys on that team that tried to do a little bit too much at times and thought we could capitalize on their mistakes.

Despite struggling to mount their trademark pressure, the Chargers (10-2) managed an equalizer just before halftime. Off a long throw, sophomore Jonas Lohr rocketed in a shot that caromed in off the crossbar to tie the game at 1–1 with 7:19 left until the break.

At halftime, Webb excoriated his players, practically shaming them into giving a better effort over the second 40 minutes. For a while after play resumed, the Chargers seemed to heed Webb’s speech, matching the Packers’ determination and drive to the ball.

But they couldn’t account for visible gaps in depth or athleticism. Liam Moore scored for Smithfield off a corner in the 46th minute, and the dagger came off the foot of Jonathan Taylor, who sneaked the ball past Chancellor goalie Lucas Owens to make it 3-1 with 29:00 left. Several Charger defenders pleaded for offsides on the play, but no flag came.

In Wednesday’s championship match, Smithfield will host Jefferson Forest, which beat James Wood on penalty kicks in Monday night’s other semifinal.

While they won’t have the opportunity to host a state final, the Chargers (10–2) fit quite a few accomplishments into a season that was condensed by the coronavirus. Chancellor went unbeaten against Fredericksburg-area competition and claimed a Region 4B title with only token resistance.

“We can’t be a victim of our own success,” Webb said. “We’re still a damn good team even though we didn’t win. At the end of the day, we have to remember how many teams would’ve traded places with us to be in this game.

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