Little Giants shut down Rockbridge, will face Stuarts Draft in title match

By Dana Jones / Correspondent
Published: May 19, 2008

The smooth soccer rhythm of Waynesboro took it to a 5-0 win over Rockbridge County on Monday in the semifinal round of the Southern Valley District tournament.
The Little Giants’ passing game defeated the Wildcats on every level. Waynesboro’s speed, aggression and especially communication commands respect on the field.
“We have good quality players,” said Waynesboro coach Bill Meicke. “Rockbridge isn’t the strongest team but they played a good game compared to the past.”
The Little Giants controlled the ball and the pace throughout the game. After five attempts at the goal, Waynesboro finally nailed its first goal at 29:51 from Mark Ostrander’s far-side kick.
Eight more attempts and the Little Giants were ready to strike on the Wildcat keeper yet again. Waynesboro’s Baur Alibekov took the ball up the field and passed it off to Martin Mandujano, who then dished it to Orlando Marin for the goal at 16:21.
“We have a lot of talent, that’s for sure, but this is definitely a team sport,” Meicke said.
Rockbridge’s defense was unable to handle Waynesboro’s quick-footed players. No matter if the Wildcats manned-up or played off, the Little Giants just couldn’t be stopped.
Eight minutes later and Waynesboro was back at the opposition’s net. A cross from Little Giant Javier Martinez to Hugo Fernandez saw another goal. With the score at 3-0, the teams were sent into halftime, but the break had no effect on the Wildcats.
The Little Giants continued to work the Wildcat’s goalie and at just 32:02, Waynesboro’s Kyle Wright sent another ball into the net. The final goal was scored at 12:19 from Blaine Sledge, who had followed up the three missed shots before. Waynesboro’s goalie touched the ball only once in the entire second half and had just eight saves throughout the game, whereas Rockbridge’s goalkeeper had 22 saves.
“This was our first game in 10 days,” said Meicke. “We still have a lot of work a head of us, it’ll take some real mental toughness to win from here on out.”
Waynesboro, undefeated in the district, will play for the championship on Wednesday against Stuarts Draft.
“It’s hard to beat a team three times,” Meicke said. “We want to prove that the other two times were for real.”