blank'/> Broughton Sports Update: November 2018

Thursday, November 29, 2018

BOYS SOCCER: 2018 Season Recap

Last night was the end of the season banquet for Men's Soccer and we got to celebrate a fantastic season in 2018. So, as this is my last update before I turn over the responsibilities to a new blog author in 2019, I wanted to recap this season for the Caps as it is worthy of review.






In Coach Michael Cantrell's first season with the boys, Broughton peaked at the right time and fought their way as the #14 seed all the way to the Eastern Region Semifinals losing a heart breaker to #2 Cardinal Gibbons 0-1.


Our 16 wins included some memorable games: defeating Leesville Road for the first time since 2015, defeating SWAC Champion Holly Springs 4-3 in the non-conference schedule, pummeling Enloe on our turf 8-1, watching John single-handedly beat Millbrook on Senior Night 3-2, and upsetting NAC VI Champion and #3 seed Heritage on their home field to advance to the third round of the playoffs ("Andrew....Andrew....").


Individually, it was a magic season for four players: Ivey O'Brien, Lucas Beeson, Andrew Rossetti and John White.

  • Ivey was tied for 3rd on the team in assists this season with 7 and finished with 15 points (4G/7A). For his career, Ivey was a 3-year starter and spent most of his career on defense playing outside back. Ivey was All-Conference in 2018 and was awarded the Coaches Award for effort and commitment to the team. Ivey is not going to play soccer in college, but given his excellence in the classroom, will have many great options for college to chose from.
  • Lucas was the 4th leading scorer in the Cap-7 with 34 points (10G/14A). Lucas got points in 14 of our 26 games and 4 games with over 2 assists. For his career, Lucas (who was a 4-year starter), had 87 points (31G/25A) and was All-Conference 3 times. What also needs to be factored in to Lucas's career is his willingness to play defense when called upon - which helped the team but impacted his stats. Lucas is looking to play in college and we'll update you once he has made his choice.
  • Andrew (UNCA commit) was the 2nd leading scorer in the Cap-7 and finished tied for 4th in scoring in 4A with 68 points (24G/20A). Andrew got points in 19 of our 26 games this season and had 6 games with over 2 goals and 4 games with over 2 assists. For his career, Andrew finished with with 138 points (49G/40A) and was All-Conference 3 times, All-Region 2 times and on the Top Drawer Soccer Fall 2018 HS All-American Watch List.
  • John was the leading scorer in the Cap-7 AND the leading scorer in 4A with 79 points (36G/7A). John got points in 17 of our 26 games including 7 games with over 3 goals (which includes: 2 games with 4 goals, 2 games with 5 goals). For his career at Broughton, John had 102 points (45G/12A) and was All-Conference 2 times, All-Region 1 time and All-State 1 time. Oh, and if you include his stats from St. David's School: John finished with 224 points (97G/30A). John has several options for playing after HS and we'll update you once they are finalized.



End of Season Awards:

MaxPreps Broughton Player of the Year:

Andrew Rossetti

Broughton Coaches Award:

Ivey O'Brien

Cap-7 All Conference:

Lucas Beeson
Andrew Rossetti
John White
Ivey O'Brien

 Cap-7 All Conference

NCSCA All Region:

Andrew Rossetti
John White

All-Region (both), All-State (John)

NCSCA All State:

John White


Division 1 Commits:

Andrew Rossetti, UNC Asheville
Bryce Meredith, Lehigh University
Ryan Meredith, Colgate University
(more coming)


Lastly, it has been a joy and a pleasure to catalog the past 3 seasons for these boys and this team. Every moment spent at the games, meeting parents and cheering on the Caps has been worth it in every way. It will be a joy to watch the underclassmen develop over the next few years for Coach Cantrell.

#skocaps (Forever)


Monday, November 12, 2018

BOYS SOCCER: #14 Caps Fall in a Heartbreaker to #2 Gibbons 0-1

Well, we certainly went out with a fight. That much is for sure.

In a game controlled in long stretches by the Caps (16-9-1), Gibbons (19-3-2) turned a second half shot off the crossbar into a goal and held on to win 1-0 in the quarterfinal game and advance to the Eastern Regional Finals on Tuesday.


Starters: Vlahoplus (GK), Hunter, Eubank, Pelletier, O'Brien (c), Coffey, B. Meredith, Willis, White, Rossetti (c), Beeson (c)



First Half:

The Caps came out from the opening whistle and took the game directly to the Crusaders. For 5-7 minute stretches, Gibbons could not get the ball out of their half of the field. However, and it was the story of the game, Broughton could not capitalize and get good shots on the GK.

The best opportunity came from a pass to John White, who played Andrew Rossetti down the side and Andrew made a nice left footed cross into the box that, after a scramble, made its way to John again who saw his shot go just wide right.

The backline had their best half of the season as Price Pelletier, Jack Eubank and Logan Hunter continually cut in front of the attackers for them to get the ball back to us.

Sam Vlahoplus was forced to come out a few times to make saves and at the end of 40 minutes it was 0-0.


Second Half:

To give credit to Gibbons, they made adjustments and put us under a lot of pressure in the first 15 minutes of the second half and that pressure paid off as a shot from distance hit the top of the crossbar and their striker was first to pounce on it and make it 1-0.

That goal woke up the Caps and the next 15 minutes found us back on the front foot and attacking Gibbons. Midfielders Bryce Meredith and Parker Willis continually found our wingers (Ivey O'Brien and Duncan Coffey) and they terrorized the outside of the Crusaders defense.

Our three best chances to even it up came on:

  • Free kick from Jack Eubank that looked to have the top corner until the last minute save from the Gibbons GK
  • A combination play in the box where Ivey found Bryce on a deflection and Bryce saw the ball stopped by the Gibbons GK again.
  • Lastly, Lucas Beeson held up the ball nicely and played Andrew Rossetti open through the box and his shot went just over the bar.

The last 5-7 minutes had us with all players up - which allowed Gibbons to have several breakaway chances that were thwarted by Sam and the defense. The final whistle blew and CGHS won 1-0.


Next Up:

Congratulations to Cardinal Gibbons for the victory and ensuring one Cap7 representative in the Eastern Regional Finals as they face #1 Green Hope on Tuesday.

As for us, it was a magically, wonderful ride this first season under Coach Cantrell. The Caps were playing their best at the end of the season and could compete with anyone on a given day.

I'll have a special wrap up post, but to the seniors: Ivey, Lucas, Andrew, John, Carter, Duncan, Logan, Hector, Bryce and Ryan - thank you for your four years with the team and for all your contributions in the future. 

On that note, I'll leave you with a line from Jason Mraz's song 90 Million Miles:

"...Just know, that wherever you go..., no you're never alone, you can always get back home.."

You are always welcome back home to Broughton.
 
#skocaps


Friday, November 9, 2018

BOYS SOCCER: Fourth Round Playoff Preview - Saturday

(14) Broughton v (2) Cardinal Gibbons / 5:00PM - 11/10/18 / @ CGHS

#2 Cardinal Gibbons High School
18-3-2, 10-2 (1st Place - Cap7)
Coach: Tim Healy

Video: Gibbons Defeats Enloe 5-2

Leading Scorers:
Justin Dieter (Sr)
Leonel Contreras (Sr)

Other Key Players:
Brandon Guggenheim (Sr), Eli Mizerk (Sr), Cole Stewart (Sr), Joseph Beason (Jr), Declan Shaw (Jr)

Head 2 Head (with recaps):
Cardinal Gibbons 4 - Broughton 1 (@ CGHS)
Broughton 2 - Cardinal Gibbons 3 (@ Broughton)

Common Opponents:

Enloe: Gibbons 2-1 (11-8), Broughton 1-1 (10-6)
SE Raleigh: Gibbons 2-0 (14-2), Broughton 2-0 (20-4)
Wakefield: Gibbons 1-0 (5-0), Broughton 1-0 (5-3)
Heritage: Gibbons 0-0-1 (1-1), Broughton 1-0 (3-1)
Holly Springs: Gibbons 1-0 (1-0), Broughton 1-0 (4-3)
Leesville Road: Gibbons 2-0 (4-2), Broughton 1-1 (2-2)
Cary: Gibbons 1-0 (4-1), Broughton 0-1 (2-6)
Sanderson: Gibbons 2-0 (5-1), Broughton 2-0 (5-2)
Millbrook: Gibbons 1-1 (5-4), Broughton 1-1 (6-7)
Green Hope: Gibbons 0-1 (1-2), Broughton 0-1 (0-2)
Apex: Gibbons 0-0-1 (2-2), Broughton 1-0 (5-1)



Observations:

A second half flurry of goals led the #14 Caps past the #22 Cougars. It wasn't our best game, but we did what we needed to defeat them and move on to the quarterfinals.

Now we meet #2 Cardinal Gibbons. They are a very worthy and deserving #2 seed. Gibbons is big, fast, aggressive and well coached. They come at you in these 10-15 minute waves where it feels like they have 13 players out there. And on their home field (large and turfed) they are almost unbeatable.

That said, the NCHSAA still requires you to actually play the game, so if we're going to travel to there in the freezing cold weather on Saturday night, we might as well try to win. And based on our last game with them and common opponents - we might just have a punchers chance.....

Our offense is still lead by the top 2 scorers in the Cap7: John White and Andrew Rossetti (co-captain).

John White: 36G/6A=76points (1st in Class 4A)
Andrew Rossetti: 24G/20A=68 points (4th in Class 4A)

Supporting these two are co-captains Lucas Beeson and Ivey O'Brien. Lucas is heating up with 34 points (10G/14A) and Ivey O'Brien (4G/7A) with 15.

The rest of the midfield is led by Senior Bryce Meredith and Junior Parker Willis.

The back line boasts a mix of grade levels as Sophomore "Prince" Pelletier, Junior Jack Eubank, and Seniors Logan Hunter and Duncan Coffey have all helped defend our goal.

In the net, Broughton is blessed with 3 great GK but Junior Sam Vlaholpus has taken over in the playoffs and is playing amazing in the net.



Final Thoughts:

We are the prohibitive underdog on paper this Saturday night (as we should be) to progress to the Eastern Region Finals on Tuesday. But, we're playing our best soccer of the season, have 2 of the top 5 scorers in 4A, and have absolutely nothing to lose. ALL the pressure is on CGHS.

So, get your coats and gloves. Be at the tailgate at 3:30P and enjoy watching these boys play another game.

Bring it on.

#SkoCaps

BOYS SOCCER: #14 Broughton Advances to 4A Quarterfinals with 5-1 Victory

Final 8.

That's where your #14 Broughton Capitals (16-8-1) find themselves after handling the tough #22 Apex Cougars (11-10-1) at home by the score of 5-1 last night. This marks the Caps second trip to the final 8 in the last 4 years.



LINK: News & Observer (all goals)


Starters: Vlahoplus (GK), Hunter, Eubank, Pelletier, O'Brien (c), Coffey, B. Meredith, Willis, White, Rossetti (c), Beeson (c)


First Half:

The game started off well for the Caps as they dominated play and possession from the opening whistle. A few early chances from Andrew Rossetti (on a cross from Jack Eubank) and Lucas Beeson (from John White) saw them just miss wide or off the post.

Broughton then got its deserved goal as John White played Lucas open and Lucas finished nicely with his left foot to put us up 1-0.

Our midfielders (Bryce Meredith, Lucas Beeson and Parker Willis) did a phenomenal job keeping the ball in our half and not allowing Apex to complete more than 2 passes.

But, in soccer, you have to take advantage when you have the pressure. We didn't and with 40 seconds left - Apex got a header goal against the run of play to put us on equal footing at halftime.


Second Half:

I wish we could put a microphone in the pep talks at half because for the past month, Coach Cantrell has motivated the boys to a second half charge.

After a slow start for the first 10 minutes, Broughton exploded for 4 goals in 10 minutes:

2-1: Andrew Rossetti gets his 20th assist of the season as he plays John White down the left side - John then beats 3 defenders and rifles it home on the short side.

3-1: John again takes a pass (this time from Lucas Beeson) and nets his 4A leading 36th goal(!!) by beating the GK to his right.

4-1: Duncan Coffey (who was everywhere last night) makes a great run down the left side, switches to his right foot and then lofts a cross that hits the crossbar and into the path of Lucas Beeson who heads it home for his 2nd of the game.

5-1: This was all Bryce Meredith. Bryce made a run down the right side, cut into the box and was taken down. No question. He stepped up and forced the GK to the opposite direction to score.

At this point, Apex was without an answer and Broughton's defense: Sam Vlahoplus, Ivey O'Brien, "Prince" Pelletier, Logan Hunter and Jack Eubank saw the game out with little trouble and Coach Cantrell was actually able to give some other kids some playing time over the last 7 minutes.


Next Up:

Saturday. 5P @ Gibbons. 'Nuff said.

#skocaps

Wednesday, November 7, 2018

BOYS SOCCER: Third Round Playoff Preview - Thursday

(14) Broughton v (22) Apex / 6:30PM - 11/8/18 / @ Broughton

#22 Apex High School
11-9-1, 6-6 (3rd place Southern Wake)
Coach: Kevin Todd
Video: Apex Upsets Wake Forest

Leading Scorers:
Nicholas Brothers (Sr) 15G/9A = 39 points
Michael Boa (Sr) 6G/6A = 18 points

Other Key Players:
Wes Hair (Sr), Sean Laney (Fr), Zack Wampler (Sr), Andrew Blattner (Jr), Hayes Freiling (Sr)

Common Opponents:

Panther Creek: Apex 2-0 (8-3), Broughton 0-0-1 (2-2)
Cardinal Gibbons: Apex 0-0-1 (2-2), Broughton 0-2 (3-7)
Wakefield: Apex1-0 (6-0), Broughton 1-0 (5-3)
Holly Springs: Apex 1-2 (4-6), Broughton 1-0 (4-3)
Cary: Apex 0-1 (2-3), Broughton 0-1 (2-6)
Wake Forest: 1-0 (3-2), Broughton 1-0 (2-1)
Green Hope: 0-1 (0-1), Broughton 0-1 (0-2)



Observations:

The boys played their most complete game of the season on Tuesday against #3 Heritage and came away with a very deserving W. Our reward is a home game against #22 Apex who upset #6 seed Holly Springs 1-0.

This is a dangerous team. Forget the seed. Technically, we are the worst team that they've played in the playoffs by seeding. They will not be afraid of playing us in any way. 

And when you look at their results, they had some losses for sure, but look at their W's: Panther Creek (twice), Wake Forest, and they tied Gibbons at Gibbons. It will be a 80 minute battle for sure.

Our offense is still lead by the top 2 scorers in the Cap7: John White and Andrew Rossetti (co-captain).

John White: 34G/6A=74points (1st in Class 4A)
Andrew Rossetti: 24G/19A=67 points (5th in Class 4A)

Supporting these two are co-captains Lucas Beeson and Ivey O'Brien. Lucas with 30 points (8G/14A) and Ivey O'Brien (4G/7A).

The rest of the midfield is led by Senior Bryce Meredith and Junior Parker Willis.

The back line boasts a mix of grade levels as Sophomore Price Pelletier, Junior Jack Eubank, and Seniors Logan Hunter and Duncan Coffey have all helped defend our goal.

In the net, Broughton is blessed with 3 great GK but Junior Sam Vlaholpus has taken over in the playoffs and is playing amazing in the net.



Final Thoughts:

Apex is a tough team, with a great coach and they are playing with house money. You look at their victories and they are not going to be intimidated by coming to Broughton to play. Broughton must play as well as they did on Tuesday to advance to the 4th round and a potential date with either Enloe or Cardinal Gibbons on Saturday. Bring it on.

#SkoCaps

BOYS SOCCER: #14 Broughton Upsets #3 Heritage To Advance To 3rd Round

"Total team effort."

This was the quote from Coach Cantrell after the game and anyone who was in attendance would nod their heads up and down in agreement. Because for one night, #14 Broughton (15-8-1) proved that is is as good as any team in the state by controlling #3 Heritage (15-4-4) on their wet, soggy home field and winning 3-1 to advance to the third round of the 4A Playoffs.

N&O Recap (Interviews with Andrew Rossetti & Coach Cantrell)


Starters: Vlahoplus (GK), Hunter, Eubank, Pelletier, O'Brien (c), Coffey, B. Meredith, Willis, White, Rossetti (c), Beeson (c)


First Half:

From the opening whistle, Broughton was the aggressor and dictated the action to the Huskies. Several early chances from Andrew Rossetti and John White were saved by the Heritage GK. The midfield: Bryce Meredith, Lucas Beeson, Parker Willis, Duncan Coffey and Ivey O'Brien controlled all the action between the goal boxes. There were many stretches were Heritage could not get out of their own end for minutes at a time.

It appeared that this pressure had paid off twice as first - a pass to Andrew was shot past the GK for an apparent 1-0 lead but was (at least to the observers on the sideline) incorrectly called offsides. Then, Duncan played a beautiful left-footed cross into the box that deflected on frame and the GK made a lunging save off the back post to keep it scoreless.

Heritage found its footing towards the end of the half and Junior GK Sam Vlahoplus came out to make 2 amazing saves and keep the score 0-0.

Finally, with 10 seconds left, Logan Hunter cleared a short corner kick from Heritage out to Andrew who took it the length of the field and had his shot with 3 seconds left tipped just wide and the halftime score was 0-0.


Second Half:

Instead of hanging their heads for being tied in a game that they were controlling, the Caps made early work of the Huskies in the second half and 3 minutes in - they got their goal as Ivey O'Brien played a pass through the box to find Andrew Rossetti - who didn't miss from 8 yards out. 1-0.

Heritage tied it up on a deflected cross in the box and after 10 minutes it was 1-1.

The last 30 minutes were all Broughton. First, Duncan Coffey made one of his long runs down the left side and played it to 4A's leading scorer - John White and he coolly slotted it home to put us up 2-1.

Then, Andrew got his brace by taking a long pass from Bryce Meredith and beating the GK with his left to make it 3-1.

Just like in the first half, Sam Vlahoplus was called on to make some HUGE saves and the defense: Logan Hunter, Jack Eubank and "Prince" Pelletier were forced to clear run after run from the Heritage strikers as they threw all their players up high.

The last 10 minutes were more about chances that Broughton had to make it 4-1 versus Heritage making it 3-2. Andrew, John and Lucas Beeson all had shots saved or hit the side netting.

The final whistle blew and we advanced 3-1.


Special Shoutout: John White & Andrew Rossetti


John was guarded by 2-3 defenders at all times in the game. (No joke - 2-3 guys at all times) On a sloppy track, John ran after every ball and his ability to keep these extra men occupied is what lead to all the possession and other chances we had last night. It is what happens when you are the leading scorer in 4A (and he still got a goal!!)

Andrew was the target of the Heritage Hooligans student section attention from the kickoff.  Lots of chants of "Andrew....Andrew.....Andrew" were heard and even a "Rossetti? You should be on a pasta box!" However, after his second goal, and the Broughton fans cheering "Andrew....Andrew" they (the Hooligans) were not heard from again......


Next Up:

Broughton advances to the third round of the 4A playoffs for the first time since 2016 and - because of an upset - will have a HOME game on Thursday night at Broughton Stadium. Our opponent will be the #22 Apex Cougars. Apex has upset #11 Wake Forest and #6 Holly Springs to get to this game, so you know that they'll be confident coming to play us.

We need ALL Caps to come out tomorrow night to support the boys in their playoff run.

#skocaps

Tuesday, November 6, 2018

BOYS SOCCER: Second Round Playoff Preview - Tuesday

(14) Broughton v (3) Heritage / 6:30PM - 11/6/18 / @ Heritage

#3 Heritage High School
15-3-4, 8-1-1 (1st place NAC VI)
Coach: Scott Sloan

Leading Scorers:
Dylan Berk (Sr) 22G/21A = 65 points
Dorian Sano (Sr) 22G/9A = 53 points

Other Key Players:
Ashton Ferrante (Jr), Jake Owczarzak (Sr), Patrick Williams (Sr), Patrick Appah (Sr)

Common Opponents:

Panther Creek: Heritage 1-0 (4-1), Broughton 0-0-1 (2-2)
Cardinal Gibbons: Heritage 0-0-1 (1-1), Broughton 0-2 (3-7)
Sanderson: Heritage 0-0-1 (1-1), Broughton 2-0 (5-2)
Millbrook: Heritage 0-1-1 (7-8), Broughton 1-1 (6-7)
Wakefield: Heritage 3-0 (15-5), Broughton 1-0 (5-3)
Rolesville: Wakefield 2-0 (11-3), Broughton 1-0 (10-3)
Corinth Holders: Heritage 2-0 (10-3 - one in PK's), Broughton 2-0 (9-2)
Wake Forest: 1-0-1 (3-3), Broughton 1-0 (2-1)



Observations:

It was a great first playoff win that saw the Caps clear the bench and get some needed experience for some younger players - both for this game and next season.

Heritage is deservedly the 3rd seed and - at first glance - looks a lot like us as they have two top 10 scorers in 4A with Seniors Dylan Berk and Dorian Sano. And behind them, a very strong, senior laden supporting cast. They made it to the semi-finals last year so they will not be intimidated in any way.

Our offense is still lead by the top 2 scorers in the Cap7: John White and Andrew Rossetti (co-captain).

John White: 33G/6A=72 points (1st in Class 4A)
Andrew Rossetti: 22G/19A=63 points (6th in Class 4A)

Supporting these two are co-captains Lucas Beeson and Ivey O'Brien. Lucas with 30 points (8G/14A) and Ivey O'Brien (4G/6A).

The rest of the midfield is led by Senior Bryce Meredith and Junior Parker Willis.

The back line boasts a mix of grade levels as Sophomore Price Pelletier, Junior Jack Eubank, and Seniors Logan Hunter and Duncan Coffey have all helped defend our goal.

In the net, Broughton is blessed with 3 great GK: Senior Ryan Meredith, Junior Sam Vlahoplus and Senior Hector Martinez-Porras have all taken turns between the pipes.



Final Thoughts:

As mentioned above, these two teams look almost exactly alike: good coaches, a couple of top scorers, strong experienced supporting cast and good GK. They've got the home field advantage and we want revenge for last season. Bring your popcorn, this is going to be a good one.

#SkoCaps

Monday, November 5, 2018

BOYS SOCCER: #14 Broughton Overpowers #19 Wakefield 5-3 in Round 1

In a game that #14 Broughton (14-8-1) controlled from the start, Broughton rode a hat trick of goals from John White, a hat trick of assists from TZ Oo and a goal/assist from Andrew Rossetti to defeat the #19 Wolverines (10-10-1) to progress in the 4A Playoffs to meet #3 Heritage on Tuesday.

News & Observer Story plus Video

Starters: Vlahoplus (GK), Hunter, Eubank, Pelletier, O'Brien (c), Coffey, B. Meredith, Willis, White, Rossetti (c), Beeson (c)


First Half:


The Caps started out strong from the opening whistle and John White put a couple of shots on the GK that were saved. Wakefield did get a long ball breakaway that was very well saved by Junior Sam Vlahoplus to keep it 0-0.

Lucas Beeson, who was strong on the ball all game, controlled a long pass, and then hit a low right-footed rocket that was saved by the GK and Andrew Rossetti ran onto it and hit the post with his left foot to keep it scoreless.

At that point, the John White show started as he first took a long ball from Lucas Beeson and put a left footed shot past the GK from a tight angle and we were up 1-0. Wakefield actually answered quickly after that and it was 1-1.

The game then slowed down a little in the middle of the first half as both teams continued to figure each other out.

It was at that point that TZ Oo came into the game and gave us a spark. First, he played a nice ball to John who expertly toe-poked it home to put us up 2-1. Then TZ Oo fought for the ball, got it to John, who scored as pretty of a goal as you'll ever see by beating two defenders and from 12 yards out absolutely cracking a shot to the top corner. 3-1 Caps and hat trick for John. (Please watch the video in the link for yourself).

(I am checking Max Preps today, but believe that those goals put John as #1 in 4A with 33 goals this season!!)

No more goals in the half with the score 3-1 to Broughton.


Second Half:

Wakefield tried to come out and press us in the second half, but the boys were ready. After a few minutes of pressure, the Caps settled in and put the game away thanks to Andrew Rossetti & Logan Hunter.

First, a well placed corner kick from Andrew found the barrelling run of Logan Hunter and his great diving header put us up 4-1.

Andrew then took a nice pass from TZ Oo, beat his defender, and then hit a curler from 20 yards out to give us the 5-1 lead. (Again, go to the video)

At that point, Lucas Beeson worked hard to get on the scoreboard and had a shot saved and one that just missed to get us to 6.

Then, with almost half the second half left to be played, Coach Cantrell utilized our depth to give some other boys some run in the game and they played well. Wakefield scored two goals in that time but the game was already out of reach.

Final score 5-3 Caps.


Next Up:

With that victory, Broughton - for the second year in a row - finds itself traveling to #3 Heritage on Tuesday for its second round game. Last year's game was a memorable one and saw the Huskies needing a late goal to beat the Caps 2-1. Heritage went on to the 4A Semi-finals only to lose to Cardinal Gibbons.

That said for this season, Broughton matches up well with Heritage and hopes to be able to get over the hump and get to the 3rd round for the first time since 2016. It should be a great game.

#SkoCaps

Friday, November 2, 2018

BOYS SOCCER: First Round Playoff Preview - Saturday


(14) Broughton v (19) Wakefield / 4:00PM - 11/3/18 / @ Broughton Stadium

#19 Wakefield High School
10-9-1, 4-5-1 (4th place NAC VI)
Coach: Cooper Paiva (replaced Coach Cantrell this season)

Leading Scorer:
John Alexander (Jr) - 16G/1A

Other Key Players:
Ali Sharif (Sr), Chase Taylor (Sr), David Guzman (Jr)

Common Opponents:

SE Raleigh: Wakefield 1-0 (6-1), Broughton 2-0 (20-4)
Cardinal Gibbons: Wakefield 0-1 (0-5), Broughton 0-2 (3-7)
Green Hope: Wakefield 1-0 (2-1), Broughton 0-1 (0-2)
Enloe: Wakefield 0-1 (0-3), Broughton 1-1 (10-6)
Rolesville: Wakefield 2-0 (11-3), Broughton 1-0 (10-3)
Corinth Holders Wakefield 3-0 (6-3), Broughton 2-0 (9-2)
Wake Forest: 1-0-1 (3-3), Broughton 1-0 (2-1)

**The key item to note here is that they beat #1 Green Hope 2-1, so they can obviously crank it up at a high level when needed**


Observations:

The Caps did a nice job to go 4-2 in the second half of the Cap7 season and secure the 14 seed. They battled a lot of injuries and hope to be healthy for the playoff run.

The offense is lead by the top 2 scorers in the Cap7: John White and Andrew Rossetti (co-captain).

John White: 30G/6A=66 points (4th in Class 4A)
Andrew Rossetti: 21G/18A=60 points (7th in Class 4A)

Supporting these two are co-captains Lucas Beeson and Ivey O'Brien. Lucas with 29 points (8G/13A) and Ivey O'Brien (4G/6A).

The rest of the midfield is led by Senior Bryce Meredith and Junior Parker Willis.

The back line boasts a mix of grade levels as Sophomore Price Pelletier, Junior Jack Eubank, and Seniors Logan Hunter and Duncan Coffey have all helped defend our goal.

In the net, Broughton is blessed with 3 great GK: Senior Ryan Meredith, Junior Sam Vlahoplus and Senior Hector Martinez-Porras have all taken turns between the pipes.



Final Thoughts:

There are no easy games in the Class 4A playoffs and this year is no exception. Wakefield is a solid team that will want to show Coach Cantrell he made a mistake leaving them this season. Add to it that they gave #1 Green Hope one of its only two losses and the Caps will need to play a great game to advance to Tuesday's match up v #3 Heritage.

#SkoCaps