Friday, May 13, 2005 | ||
Bad Links? | Lady Chiefs seek sixth title, boys seek thirdBy MICHAEL BOYLAN Fans of the McIntosh soccer teams should come out in force tonight because they both could be bringing home another state title. It would be the girls sixth state championship, their third in AAAA and their second state title in a row, while it would be the third for the boys and thier first since 2000. The Lady Chiefs made the AAAA finals by handing second ranked Marist, the AAAA state champs the last two years in a row, a 4-0 loss on Tuesday night. Goals were scored by Katie Schulz, Brittany Schneider, Jesse Lenze and Monica Hogan but coach Marcia Clark credited the play of defender Annie Nacke as being crucial in the victory. Annie works her rear off every game in a high pressure position where mistakes can be deadly, said Clark. She has been solid as a rock, making great decisions under pressure. Clark also credited Arlan Whittle with solid play. The win set up a title shot against the fourth ranked St. Pius X Golden Lady Lions tonight at 7 p.m. The McIntosh Lady Chiefs (23-0-1) are riding a 40 game unbeaten streak into tonights AAAA state championship match against St. Pius. Their last loss came against Milton (3-2) on March 6 of 2004. Since then they have won a AAAAA state championship against their rivals, the Starrs Mill Lady Panthers, have posted 27 shutouts and have outscored their opponents 256-15. They havent given up a goal since April 12 of this year and have outscored their opponents in the state playoffs this year 30-0. Needless to say, this team is strong. Their opponent tonight, St. Pius X (12-5-4) ended the regular season with a 4-0 loss to Marist but have also gone through the playoffs this year unscored upon, outscoring their opponents 7-0. The Golden Lady Lions will be a fairly familiar face to the Lady Chiefs. The two teams met in a tournament in Jekyll Island this year and McIntosh emerged with a 5-1 victory. Against common opponents, the Lady Chiefs are also ahead. St. Pius X lost to Shiloh, Marist and Westminster and McIntosh defeated all of those teams. Of course, winning the game on paper doesnt equal a win on the field, but the Lady Chiefs appear to have the tools to win a title. Their midfield can take control of a game and aid the offense in swarming in front of a net and wearing out any defense. The Lady Chief defense does a good job of preventing too many scoring chances and the play of their goalkeepers make the big saves when they have to. The boys made the final by defeating St. Pius X 1-0 on their turf on Wednesday night. The match was physical and tempers flared at times but McIntosh emerged victorious after Derek Farnsworth knocked in a goal on an assist from Patrick Murray with just over 12 minutes remaining. The Chiefs defense played very well and goalkeeper Matt Rogers made six saves, including a flurry of them in the closing minutes to preserve the win. Coach Bunky Colvin credited the leadership of his seniors in making the state final. Our seniors didnt want to lose tonight,said Colvin, who has seen members of this team come close to making the finals before and fall short. Weve had some bad luck in the past but we got a break tonight and we finsished our chance. The Chiefs (21-2-1) have scored 100 goals this season and have allowed only 16, two of which have come in their state playoff run. They have posted 14 shutouts this year and have defeated five ranked opponents, including a win for the first time over the Starrs Mill boys soccer team. The offense has had a successful year, led by Nader Jarun, Michael Mateos and Murray, but freshman Farnsworth has come on strong towards the end of the year, scoring several game winners including one against Woodward Academy in the region championship. Rogers has played superbly in the net and the entire Chiefs team has played well, controlling the pace of the game and protecting their net. Woodward Academy (15-4-2) won the AAAA championship last year and have done what they needed to do to make it back to the AAAA final. The road has been a bit scary for Woodward fans though as Hardaway took them to penalty kicks in the second round of the state playoffs this year and the quarterfinal game against Chamblee went to two overtimes. The War Eagles have to be thrilled to get one more crack at McIntosh, which has handed them two 1-0 losses this year. Woodward has 10 shutouts this year in their 15 wins and they have scored 78 goals while only giving up 23. They have faced solid competition this year and are a formidable opponent for the Chiefs. McIntosh and Woodward Academy will face off at 9 p.m. The state championship trophy is what every team shoots for when the season begins and McIntoshs boys and girls once again have it within their reach. |
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