The Louisa Lions boys’ soccer team closed out its season with a home contest against the Goochland Bulldogs on May 18.
The Lions got on the board first, with Daniel Green putting a shot away just over five minutes into the game. Louisa held the lead until the 22nd minute when a successful penalty kick from Goochland tied the score.
The Bulldogs took the lead with just over 11 minutes left in the first half, going up 2-1, but a late goal from George Albertson tied things up again heading into the halftime break. A second penalty kick just under five minutes in the second half and another goal less than a minute later put Goochland up 4-2. Despite numerous attempts from the Lions’ offense, they were unable to close the gap, while the Bulldogs added a fifth goal in the final minutes.
“We had a couple of attempts, but it was hard to get back in there,” said coach Robert Albertson. “They’ve got a pretty fast striker up top and they played to that. It’s just a tough loss. Everybody played hard, and unfortunately the score didn’t reflect what happened in the game.”
Green had two shots, including his goal, and George Albertson had three, including his score. Ethan Brooks added three more shots for the Lions and Parker Harman, Bradley Eyler, Wyatt Hopkins, Ulises Ordonez-Diaz, Josue Chavez and Fransisco Vasquez each had one. In goal, Kaden Gurski had five saves for Louisa.
Prior to the start of the game, the Lions honored senior players Green, Eyler, Maddox Miller and Andrew Estes for their senior night celebration.
“Daniel is the heart and soul of this team,” Coach Albertson said. “He gives a hundred percent every single night ... He always wants to be on that field and that shows his character and leadership. Maddox as well, you can see how much the defense gets lifted up with him back there. Andrew couldn’t be with us tonight unfortunately, but he’s a key defensive player for us as well, and Bradley came out this year and he’s been a great addition to the team in reserve and starting when I needed him to.
“While we only have four, the team is definitely led by the seniors,” he added. “I can’t thank them enough for all the hard work and leadership they’ve shown the younger players we have.”
Girls Soccer
The Lady Lions soccer team closed out their season with a pair of road contests, traveling first to Monticello on May 18 and then to Goochland on May 19.
At Monticello, the Lions held the Mustangs to a single goal in the first half, before the Mustangs extended their lead in the second, winning 5-0.
“It was a tough game,” said assistant coach Patrick Miller. “We played competitively throughout the course of the first half. The fatigue and longevity of the season got the best of us this match. We did have a number of opportunities at goal on various occasions, however we were not able to capitalize.”
The Lions managed to keep the Bulldogs out of the goal throughout the entirety of their final outing of the season, but were unable to score any goals of their own, ending the match in a 0-0 tie after overtime.
“It was a hard-fought game from both sides,” Miller said.
