JF boys soccer plays for title

RADFORD — Jefferson Forest coach Jedd Zaring describes freshman striker Matt Crider as “a predator.” And true to form Friday afternoon, Crider hung around midfield, waiting for a Tabb physical defense to break down. Once Crider saw goalkeeper Jeremy Lee send a ball deep over the midfield line, he struck.

Crider got a step on two Tabb defenders once the ball was in the air and took the pass cleanly. Then, he used his speed to gain separation and beat Tabb goalkeeper Matt Powell high for the only goal in Jefferson Forest’s 1-0 Group AA semifinal victory. The Cavaliers improved to 23-0 and advances to today’s 10 a.m. state championship match at Radford University against two-time defending champion Blacksburg.

“Well, all I can tell you that somewhere along the line, if we were going to have a good year, we were going to have to go through Blacksburg,” Zaring said. “That’s just the way it is.”

The Cavaliers earned their first trip to the state title match since 2004, when they lost to Charlottesville on penalty kicks. To get there, they had to survive an early Tigers’ surge and beat Tabb at its own game. In its state quarterfinal win at Broad Run on Tuesday, Tabb was outshot 17-2 but scored on both of its opportunities. The Tigers used punishing defense to deny chance after chance.

Jefferson Forest played a similar game on Friday. Crider’s goal came in the 34^th minute on just the Cavaliers’ second shot on goal.

“Their defense was playing up, and Jeremy Lee saw an opening there and hit it over the last defender,” Crider said. “I just sprinted on to it.”

Though he had the run, Crider still had to finish. He did so beautifully, drawing Powell out away from the goal line and chipping it over his head.

“Usually, I’ll glance down at the ball to make sure that I have it,” Crider said. “Then I’ll look up and see the goalkeeper. I’ll keep my composure and try to place it.”

Lee said Crider wasn’t the first teammate he was looking for on the play.

“I took a touch, and I saw the (Tabb) forward attacking me,” Lee said. “I made my touch away from him. I wasn’t really looking for Crider. I saw Marco (Kempf) or Carolos (Munoz), one of those guys was in front of him. I was trying to play it to him. Luckily, I hit a good ball, the wind took it, Crider ran on it and made a beautiful finish. He did the hard work. I had the easy stuff.”

Tabb (16-5) supplied much of the pressure in the first 15 minutes, as midfielder Jacob Mader got free on the left flank on multiple occasions. JF’s Drew Henderson made a key defensive play in the box early, forcing Tabb’s Robbie Edmonds off a ball and preventing a point-blank shot. Eight minutes into the match, Mader took a ball right in front of Lee and had the Cavalier keeper beat, but he pushed the shot high over the crossbar.

“I remember I said to myself when that happened, that was their chance,” Zaring said. “And they missed it.”

Once play moved out of JF’s end and into the midfield, the Cavaliers began to dominate the match. Crider had another incredible opportunity in the 77^th minute, as he used a burst of speed to break free of Nick Hecker in the box. His touch on the finish was a bit heavy, and Hecker was able to rebound and head the ball away before it crossed the goal line. Tabb’s last chance came in the final two minutes, as Riley Maw took a through pass and got free on Lee’s left side. But Maw’s shot on goal curled wide, and the Cavaliers ran out the clock before celebrating their state championship berth at midfield.

“(Blacksburg) knocked us out the last time we made it to the state semis,” Crider said. “Blacksburg will be tough.”