Just minutes after Western Albemarle fell to George Mason Tuesday night in the Group 4A state semifinals, Warriors coach Tara Hohenshelt looked at defender Logan Foster and said “you need one of these” before hugging the senior.
Hohenshelt doled out a number of hugs after the Warriors, including a group of seniors that powered an incredible three-year run highlighted by three straight state final four appearances, got upended 12-7 by the Mustangs, ending Western’s run a game short of the state final.
The Warriors couldn’t find an answer all night for Mason’s Sarah Lubnow and Amy Roche as the tandem exploded for 10 goals between them while Western’s offense sputtered.
“We knew what to expect from them and we (had) to stop them,” Hohenshelt said. “I know that sounds simple, but we have to stop them. We were one to two seconds late on a couple of things.”
The Warriors’ Sammie Magargee finished with three goals for Western, but she had to work for all three of them, taking nine shots on the night. Hannah Plantz, Bella Moriconi, Hanna Schuler and Mady Starsia each had goals while Kate Snyder had an assist. The Warriors’ offense struggled to get in sync all night.
“We knew we had to shoot around their goalie and we were shooting in areas of the cage where the saves were (easy to make),” Hohenshelt said.
The loss ends the Warriors’ season while Mason advances to the state final for the first time in program history where they’ll face Woodgrove.
