Nandua Wins Regionals, Now Set to Host State Championship

0
844
The Nandua Warriors pose for a picture at the end of the game as the 2021 Division I Region A champions.

By Brennan Waldorf –

6/15/21
Warriors 5, Firebirds 2

6/17/21
Warriors 4, Bull Islanders 3

6/21/21
Warriors 3, Eagles 1

It’s been an eventful couple of weeks for the Nandua Warriors boys soccer team. On June 11, the Region A Division II Tournament was set to begin but inclement weather canceled games across the state, postponing them to the following Monday, June 14. The Warriors were set to play Windsor in the first round but a forfeit by the Dukes automatically put Nandua in the Regional semifinals.

The semifinals brought a familiar foe as the Arcadia Firebirds were given the No. 5 seed in the tournament, unfortunately landing them on the same side of the bracket as Nandua. Arcadia upset No. 4 seeded Nottoway High School 5-0 in the first round on June 14, setting up another district battle between the two rivals. A lame seeding for the Firebirds resulted in another loss as the Warriors downed Arcadia 5-2 handing the Firebirds their fourth loss of the year and eliminating them from postseason play. Nandua was led by Hoslerson Joseph with two goals. Odin Bolster, Bryan Tinoco, and Jefferey Joseph had one goal each.

The win over Arcadia advanced the Warriors to the Regional finals where they faced the Poquoson Bull Islanders on June 17. Poquoson advanced to the finals after upsetting the No. 3 seed Prince Edward High in the first round 9-1 and then by defeating the undefeated No. 2 seed Bluestone High 6-0 in the semifinals. As the No. 1 seed in the tournament, Nandua was given home-field advantage in the Regional Final. With the shortened season the Warriors were in a must-win situation as the VHSL ruled that only one team from each of the four regions would advance to play in the state tournament. Backed by a home crowd the Warriors played at a high level to defeat an under seeded Poquoson squad 4-3. Hoslerson Joseph finished the game with two goals, Jeffrey Joseph and Leo Bonilla each tallied one goal and one assist, and Bryan Tinoco and Odin Bolster recorded one assist each.

The win over Poquoson advanced the Warriors to the state semifinals, with only the regional champions advancing, and the tournament shaping up to be a battle of the unbeaten, as all the remaining teams had perfect records. Nandua’s first game was on the road and required the Warriors to travel almost five hours to Clarke County High School in Berryville, Va. The Eagles entered the bout 11-0 after defeating Staunton High School 3-1 in the Region B finals. Similar to Nandua, the Eagles had an outstanding season going 9-0 in the regular season where they scored 79 goals and let up only five.

Clarke County hosted both the boys and girls State Tournament on June 21, as both their teams won the Region B Tournament but a weather delay once again pushed both games back an hour. The Warriors took the field at 6 p.m. and were put to the test in the first half as the Eagles matched up well with the maroon and silver. Nandua was first to get on the board on a penalty kick after the Eagles’ goalie, TJ Lowery, came out of the box and made contact with Bolster. Bolster drilled the penalty kick giving the Warriors the first lead of the game, 1-0, after just 11 minutes of play. The penalty kick was the one blemish on the Eagles’ defense in the first half as they held a 12-3 shot advantage over Nandua. The Warriors’ defense worked as a cohesive unit limiting the quality of shots on goal as they kept pace with the Eagles fast wings with their precision touches. An outstanding half by the Nandua backs and goalie Noah Montalvo led to a tie game 1-1, with the Eagles’ Colin Moran scoring the only goal of the game for Clarke County at the 20-minute mark. Moran was able to chip one in over Montalvo’s head on a reshot after the goalie had just deflected a shot from another Eagle striker.

In the second half, the Warriors turned the tide on the Eagles as the Warriors’ defense locked down and their strikers picked up the intensity. It was Nandua that had the shot advantage in the second, outshooting the Eagles 10-7 with several high-quality shots on goal. Hoslerson Joseph struggled in the first but awoke in the second and did exactly what he’s done all year. He found himself on the beneficial side of two Eagle turnovers: in open field at the 31-minute mark, he stuttered stepped once, twice, then took off past the last defender and took an open shot for his first goal. Then at the 18-minute mark, an almost identical goal occurred, this time Joseph only had to beat the Eagles’ goalie, which he made look easy, chipping in his second goal and putting Nandua ahead 3-1.

Nandua went on to hand the Eagles their first loss of the year and punched the Warriors’ ticket to the final dance. They were led by Joseph with two goals and Bolster with one goal, Montalvo had 13 saves in the game. Nandua will host the State Championship against Graham High School in Onley, June 23, at 6 p.m. The G-Men are currently 15-0 and advanced to the championship after defeating Glenvar High 3-2 in triple overtime.

Previous articleCoast Guard Assists Sinking Boat With Four People Aboard Off Wachapreague
Next articleArnold William Verbeck