It did not take long for Albemarle to get rolling. Five minutes into their West Central Section quarterfinal against Rockbridge for the Patriots scored four goals. And the goals kept pouring in. By halftime Albemarle held a healthy 12 goal advantage. Nothing changed in the second half, and behind a balanced attack, the Patriots had little trouble dispatching their first round opponent 21-3.
“We came out rearing to go from the beginning,” said Albemarle coach Laurie Pratt. “We got off to a strong start with all those goals in the first half and just took control of the game. From there we were able to continue that momentum with a variety of players on the field. I think everybody played really well.”
Up 15-2 early in the second half, the Patriots took their time and played patiently as they dominated draws and ground balls.
“I think once we got up quickly the younger players got a lot of confidence,” said Kirsten Medelsohn. “I don’t think any of us thought at the beginning of the year we’d get this many home games. Now that we’re here, we’ve never had this experience before so it’s all really exciting.”
Seven different players had multiple goal games with four player picking up hat tricks. Connor Carson led the attack with a 7-point evening split between four goals and three assists. Medelsohn put together a 3-goal 2-assist showing. Annie Barnes had three goals as did Mai Toms. Rebecca Medelsohn had a goal and an assist. Hanna Shaps, Shai Haynes and Anna Payne each had two goals.
Albemarle goalkeeper Kelsey Rund saved six of the nine shots she faced. The Patriots managed to out-shoot the Wildcats 30-9.
The Patriots (15-2) move on to the semifinals and host Salem today at 5 p.m.
“It’s been an odd experience with the weather because if we win tomorrow, it’ll be back-to-back-to-back games between this, the next and potentially a game on Monday. So we really don’t have much time to rest, it just has to be that ‘one game at a time’ approach. We’re preparing mentally now for Salem and I think we’ll come out ready to play again.”
