Mourning Gladiators shut out Generals

By Cody Clifton Correspondent
Published: May 20, 2008

GREENVILLE — The Riverheads girls’ soccer team took to the pitch with heavy hearts and black bands strapped to their left arm in memory of fallen coaches Mike Dattilio and Glenn Anderson. After a huddle in which the team yelled out, “Dattilio!” the girls took the field playing, their hearts out for the fallen leaders.
“We had a tough time concentrating last night during practice, everyone was down,” Riverheads coach Homes Tehrani said. “The team made a dedication for the rest of the season to be for Coach Dattilio. We came out and made a pact that a void has been created that we needed to fill with something positive and playing decent for Mike Dattilio.”
After an hour-and-a-half, the girls were on the winning end of a 6-0 shutout over visiting Stonewall Jackson in the semifinals of the Shenandoah District tournament.
Several minutes into the game, the Gladiators struck with a goal by Jessica Glover. Glover slipped through the defense and dribbled the ball up the pitch to score the goal past Stonewall keeper Meghan Lutz.
Riverheads used smooth ball control and passing to keep the ball away from the visiting Generals and maintaining possession on Stonewall’s end of the pitch keeping Lutz busy.
The second Riverheads goal occurred a few minutes after the first when Olivia Damico received the ball on the far side of the pitch. Damico sat on the ball for a few seconds, and then centered it to Glover. Glover bent the ball into the top left corner of the goal out of the reach of Lutz.
“[Glover]’s been quiet for the past couple of weeks,” Tehrani said. “Tonight she came out of her shell and she played an awesome game.”
A foul midway through the first half set up a penalty kick by the Gladiator’s Damico. Damico shot the ball towards the left side of the goal and the ball slipped past the hands of a diving Lutz to give Riverheads the lead, 3-0.
Stonewall was able to hold off the Gladiators’ attack for most of what remained in the first half, but Glover took over once again before the halftime whistle. Glover dribbled the ball past the defense, reminiscent of her first goal, and let loose on a shot that found the back of the net for a hat trick.
“It was hard to play,” Glover said. “We knew [Dattilio] was up there watching and we just wanted to play well for him and that’s what we did.”
Another foul set up another chance for a goal late in the first half for the Gladiators when Courtney Shifflett stepped to the line. She shot the ball straight ahead, but a save by Lutz kept a four on the board for Riverheads.
Shifflett would get another chance just before the half when a booted ball deflected off the hands of Lutz, leading to a Shifflett kick that caught Lutz by surprise for another Gladiators’ goal.
The Gladiators held the ball during the second half until the last few minutes when Kristin Shomo, a starting defender, was inserted at forward. Shomo took charge of the ball and hammered it home into the back of the goal, accounting for the final score.
“[Dattilio] loved this team and these girls played for him tonight,” Tehrani said.
Riverheads will play for the Shenandoah District championship Thursday against Buffalo Gap in Greenville.