Rival Rams, Bulldogs To Play for Title

Prior to the season, the consensus was that No. 4 Robinson and No. 2 Westfield would be at the top of the Virginia AAA Concorde District and Northern Region.

The Bulldogs (14-2) captured the Concorde regular season crown, and the Rams countered by winning the tournament title. And last night, both came out on top in their respective Northern Region semifinals -- Robinson 1-0 over Jefferson, and Westfield 2-0 over Yorktown -- to set up an all-Concorde region final.

Robinson (14-1-2) beat Westfield earlier this season, 3-1.

"What more can you ask for?" said Westfield All-Met forward Sean Murnane, who scored the game-winner for the Bulldogs. "It's going to be a battle for sure. We've got to come out flying."

Robinson turned in a ninth consecutive shutout in its win against the Colonials, and got a superb second half strike from George Vanegas to halt Jefferson's 10-game unbeaten streak and book a second consecutive trip to states.

Jefferson (10-3-5) continued to be one of the most well organized teams in the region, staying compact in the back and forcing the Rams to pick and choose spots going forward with pace. But a Colonials mistake finally came in the second half when a square ball across the middle of the field found no one on the end of it, and instead Robinson midfielder Justin Koo collected the ball in stride to start a counterattack.

Koo pushed the ball quickly up field and found Vanegas on the right side. The senior midfielder collected the pass with his right foot, cut back inside to his left foot and curled a shot around the outstretched Jefferson goalkeeper inside the far post.

In the second game of the doubleheader, Westfield survived a strong first half from Yorktown (11-7-3) and broke the game open late to secure its own spot at states.

Westfield sacrificed some firepower up top for stability in the middle by moving Murnane into the midfield. But with the game scoreless in the second half, the Virginia-bound Murnane moved back up top and got the game winner with 23 minutes remaining when his well-timed run was rewarded by teammate Irvin Herrera.

Yorktown goalkeeper Max Von Schrader, who was solid all night, slid out to make the save. But Murnane calmly turned and collected a rebound and placed a shot to the far post as several Patriots defenders crashed toward the goal.

Around the Area

In other games, visiting Broad Run (14-6) downed Fluvanna, 3-0, in a Region II semifinal. The Spartans advance to the region final to face Virginia AA Dulles District rival Potomac Falls (15-5-1), which advanced with a 2-1 win over No. 9 Brentsville (18-2), in the other regional semifinal. . . .

In a Virginia AAA Northwest Region semifinal, No. 1 Osbourn Park (14-4-2) fell to Patrick Henry, 3-0, ending the Yellow Jackets' two-year reign on top of the region. . . .

In the other Northwest semifinal, No. 10 Gar-Field (11-1-5) knocked off Osbourn (15-5-1) with a golden goal in the third overtime, 2-1.