Jefferson Forest’s David Rochow named News & Advance all-area soccer player of the year

By scoring the only goal in the Region III boys soccer championship against Harrisonburg, Jefferson Forest senior David Rochow finally put an end to the ribbing he has taken from his older brother Jim, The News & Advance All-Area player of the year in 2006.

“With Jim for the past three years now, I’ve had to hear the stories about how he won the regional championship with his team,” said David Rochow, who shifted from midfielder to forward, the same position his older brother played, in the Cavaliers’ new 4-5-1 formation this spring. “To get the goal that won it, it was pretty amazing. I was on top of the world at that point.”

The News & Advance 2009 All-Area player of the year, who will play defense at VMI this fall, is still smiling, though his senior season didn’t end quite as planned.

David didn’t touch Jim’s single-season scoring record of 32 goals. (He finished with 20 goals, including five game-winners, and 15 assists, tops on the team in both categories.) But he did lead Forest (22-1) back to the Group AA Final Four for the first time since 2006 before suffering its only defeat — in a shootout, no less — to eventual 10th-time state champion Blacksburg. That’s the same team it beat in the 2006 Region III final before losing in the state semis.

Rochow is looking forward to the challenge of helping the Keydets earn a Big South Conference crown sometime in his career. He calls VMI, coached by his former Roanoke Star travel team skills coach Ben Freakley, an up-and-coming program.

“It’s on the rise,” Rochow said. “The freshman class that’s coming in with me is very strong. I’m really excited to come in with these guys because we’re going to be really something down the road. We’re all playing different positions. If we can bond together, we could have strong leadership like we had at JF.”

Jefferson Forest coach Jedd Zaring contends he had the area’s top two players this past spring — Rochow and midfielder David Jackson, who led the Cavs with eight game-winning goals and will continue his career at the Naval Academy.

“They were the 1-2 punch,” said Zaring, noting they played with distinctly different styles. “DJ (Jackson) was the tricky, creative one, the one who could steal the change out of your pocket. David (Rochow) was the one who would knock you over and knock the change out of your pocket, kind of the bull in the china shop.

“Both are very technical players, who have been playing at the elite level for the last couple years,” he added.

“They had the ability to do what we needed to get done to win those big games.”

As the Cavaliers got into the postseason, Zaring often had Rochow and Jackson trade places.

“We did move David back into a central midfield role when we had to sit on a lead,” Zaring said.

“That was what our tactic was when we needed to bunker in — switch DJ and Dave. He’s such a smart defender, and very tough to beat one-on-one. Even in the Blacksburg game, we made that switch at halftime. That changed the whole game for us, and got us back to where we were competing in the midfield.”

Rochow’s understanding of the game has increased at the same rate as his physical development and technical prowess.

“A lot of what I’ve had to learn is just the mental aspect of it,” he said. “The higher you go in any sport, it gets to where everybody’s as good as you are technically. What separates you is the mental side of it. Can you find ways to win as a team where other people can’t?”

Like his older brother, who signed at Elon but will transfer to Lynchburg College this fall, Rochow certainly has the drive to succeed.

“I have a love of sports and a love of competition,” he said, noting that passion intensified playing for JF. “Every year, I’d get better and better understand my roles as a leader. I tried to give everything I could give.

“We would have loved to have won a state championship, but … looking back, it was a great senior year. I can’t ask for too much more. I’m happy for what we’ve accomplished.”