No matter what, Charlottesville coach Drew Craft was dead-set on Daniel Intolubbe-Chmil taking every faceoff in the second half against Monticello. Every last one of them.
“Even when our second midfield line was out there, I made sure that Daniel came out to faceoff because mentally it’s tough to lose faceoff after faceoff to the same guy,” Craft said. “You’re hoping someone else comes out and their faceoff kid is good, he’s a good faceoff man.”
Intolubbe-Chmil won every faceoff in the second half for the Black Knights, allowing Charlottesville to transform a 3-2 halftime deficit into an 8-5 victory Tuesday night at home. Charlottesville scored four-straight goals to take control of the contest, with Eric Nissen’s exciting, leaping goal off a rebound as time expired in the third quarter kickstarting the run after a shorthanded goal by T.J. Wilthew off an Intolubbe-Chmil assist.
“First thing I said to the guy who was brining the ball in was that you’ve got to get it to our main man James Duva and he’s going to rip it,” Intolubbe-Chmil said. “That went well but he missed it and Nissen was right there on the crease and got the garbage goal.”
Casey Devine and Jack McCarthy rounded out the scoring run that stretched from the last minute of the third until the 8:22 mark of the fourth. Monticello couldn’t seem to find its footing offensively, particularly with Charlottesville controlling possession throughout the frame. While Drew Gaffney finished with two goals and an assist and Sean Knightley dished out an assist and scored once, the Mustangs struggled to put the ball on the goal most of the night.
“It’s one of those things with a young team,” said Monticello coach Matt Hicks. “Whenever we stop communicating, we can let down and have those moments.”
Sophomore goalie George Van Dyke didn’t make life easy on the Black Knights with 11 saves on the night for Monticello either, which kept the Mustangs within striking distance.
The Black Knights play Culpeper Wednesday night before the two squads lock up in a rematch of Tuesday’s game next Tuesday.
