Eagles ousted in semis
• Six seniors — three starters — will move on from Fayetteville Academy, which finishes the season 13-2-1.
By Patrick Obley
Staff writer FAYETTEVILLE ACADEMY
In the early minutes of Tuesday’s NCISAA 2-A state semifinal match, an Asheville Christian fan asked a Fayetteville Academy counterpart how the Eagles managed to beat vaunted Coastal Christian early this season.
The Fayetteville Academy booster pointed out the fact Coastal returned the favor at season’s end, handing the Eagles their lone loss of 2016. That is why the Eagles were the tournament’s No. 2 overall seed instead of No. 1.
They now have two defeats.
No. 3 Asheville Christian (16-4-2) set the tone early with some impressive defense, then pulled away in the second half of a 3-1 win, ending Fayetteville Academy’s season while advancing to face Coastal Christian on Saturday for the title.
“That was a really, really good team you just beat,” Asheville Christian coach Terry Hughes told his players, some of them laid out in exhaustion on their backs. After turning his charges loose to stretch, Hughes said the Lions seized several key moments during the match to turn it to their favor.
“We knew it would be a game of inches or moments. We talked about that quite a lot,” he said. “We knew each team would get in the neighborhood of seven or eight scoring opportunities. It was about which team seized on those moments.”
Two moments stood out.
The first came with Fayetteville Academy trailing 1-0. The Eagles earned a penalty kick but the attempt was repulsed by Asheville Christian goalkeeper Ben Vanderkwaak.
“I think it set a tone of we’re not going to quit, we’re going to fight to the end,” Hughes said. “It fired us up. You could see Ben kind of stick his chest out after that. It was a confidencebooster.”
The Eagles knotted the game late in the first half when junior Marcos de Paz made a spin move around a defender and hooked a shot past Vanderkwaak. Asheville Christian senior Max Hill responded in kind moments later to send the Eagles into intermission at a 2-1 deficit.
The second moment came after the break.
Fayetteville Academy tightened its grip on the game’s flow and pressed the Lions’ back line, but when the Lions finally broke out, they made the most of the opportunity. Senior Coleman Compton found the back of the net on a breakaway with 25:18 to play. It would be the only shot Asheville Christian would get off during the first 25 minutes of the second half.
“The penalty was one of those things. You’ve got to give the keeper credit,” Fayetteville Christian coach Andrew McCarthy said. “We score there, maybe it’s a different game, but we still tied it up after that.
“We made a few mistakes, but that’s the game,” McCarthy continued. “When it comes to the playoffs, it’s always about mistakes. We made a few — they made a few also — but we just made them at the wrong time. I can’t fault the fellas’ effort.”
Six seniors — three starters — will move on from the Eagles, who finished the season 13-2-1. The team’s core will remain largely intact for 2017.
“We’re excited about what we have,” McCarthy said. “We’ll lick our wounds for a while and then we’ll bounce back.”
• Six seniors — three starters — will move on from Fayetteville Academy, which finishes the season 13-2-1.
By Patrick Obley
Staff writer FAYETTEVILLE ACADEMY
In the early minutes of Tuesday’s NCISAA 2-A state semifinal match, an Asheville Christian fan asked a Fayetteville Academy counterpart how the Eagles managed to beat vaunted Coastal Christian early this season.
The Fayetteville Academy booster pointed out the fact Coastal returned the favor at season’s end, handing the Eagles their lone loss of 2016. That is why the Eagles were the tournament’s No. 2 overall seed instead of No. 1.
They now have two defeats.
No. 3 Asheville Christian (16-4-2) set the tone early with some impressive defense, then pulled away in the second half of a 3-1 win, ending Fayetteville Academy’s season while advancing to face Coastal Christian on Saturday for the title.
“That was a really, really good team you just beat,” Asheville Christian coach Terry Hughes told his players, some of them laid out in exhaustion on their backs. After turning his charges loose to stretch, Hughes said the Lions seized several key moments during the match to turn it to their favor.
“We knew it would be a game of inches or moments. We talked about that quite a lot,” he said. “We knew each team would get in the neighborhood of seven or eight scoring opportunities. It was about which team seized on those moments.”
Two moments stood out.
The first came with Fayetteville Academy trailing 1-0. The Eagles earned a penalty kick but the attempt was repulsed by Asheville Christian goalkeeper Ben Vanderkwaak.
“I think it set a tone of we’re not going to quit, we’re going to fight to the end,” Hughes said. “It fired us up. You could see Ben kind of stick his chest out after that. It was a confidencebooster.”
The Eagles knotted the game late in the first half when junior Marcos de Paz made a spin move around a defender and hooked a shot past Vanderkwaak. Asheville Christian senior Max Hill responded in kind moments later to send the Eagles into intermission at a 2-1 deficit.
The second moment came after the break.
Fayetteville Academy tightened its grip on the game’s flow and pressed the Lions’ back line, but when the Lions finally broke out, they made the most of the opportunity. Senior Coleman Compton found the back of the net on a breakaway with 25:18 to play. It would be the only shot Asheville Christian would get off during the first 25 minutes of the second half.
“The penalty was one of those things. You’ve got to give the keeper credit,” Fayetteville Christian coach Andrew McCarthy said. “We score there, maybe it’s a different game, but we still tied it up after that.
“We made a few mistakes, but that’s the game,” McCarthy continued. “When it comes to the playoffs, it’s always about mistakes. We made a few — they made a few also — but we just made them at the wrong time. I can’t fault the fellas’ effort.”
Six seniors — three starters — will move on from the Eagles, who finished the season 13-2-1. The team’s core will remain largely intact for 2017.
“We’re excited about what we have,” McCarthy said. “We’ll lick our wounds for a while and then we’ll bounce back.”
