The mood for Saturday afternoon’s opener was tense and jittery as players took the field on a 90 degree afternoon. Kickoff was at 3:00 PM and a multitude of fans that came out to support your Hargrave Varsity Soccer Tigers. Blue Ridge School came out early and surprised the Tigers’ brand new flat defense with an overloaded attack to the ball side. Due to disorganization and 1v1 stabbing, these mistakes resulted in two quick goals by Blue Ridge.
However, Hargrave kept their heads up and controlled the midfield, keeping possession and persevering though being down 2 goals. The halftime whistle blew and Tigers came out more organized and really dictated the pace and possession of the remainder of the game. In the 32′ of the second half, Senior captain Tyler Fallen ripped an upper-ninety scorcher to give the Tigers an edge throughout the remainder of the game, however time was not on Hargrave’s side as the Blue Ridge Barons held on for a hard-fought defeat of the Tigers. Final score: 1-2.
Outstanding performers of the game were Senior Tyler Fallen, who’s finish places him as a force to be reckoned with in the center middie spot moving forward. Junior goalkeeper Henry Averett performed well with 18 saves on the game, 13 in the first half. Finally, Luke DeWitt proved his place in the back 4 controlling the middle of the defense as a freshman leader.
