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Oakton routs Albemarle in state semis
Some coaches feel that any interruption in a pregame routine is detrimental to the play of a team, so a rain delay before Tuesday night's boys lacrosse state semifinal was less than ideal for Oakton. But coach Tony Gray actually thought the extra time spent inside prior to the game helped his players.
“When they were in the wrestling room and we told them it was time to go, they were like, 'Coach, we can't go yet,'” Gray said. “They were all in a big huddle with one guy in the middle and they were rocking and rolling. It just gave them an extra opportunity to bond. This is a very tight-knit group.”
The Cougars started off somewhat slowly following the delay, but they outscored Albemarle 11-1 in the second half to advance to Saturday's state final with a 14-3 victory.
“We didn't really change much,” said senior Rob Koster, who had two goals and two assists in the win. “It was just the speed and momentum of the game. We were playing slow, spread out. We just needed to pick up our pace. We picked it up in the second half.”
Koster scored his first goal of the game less than a minute into the third quarter, igniting a 10-0 run for Oakton over the next 14 minutes. Senior James McClellan and junior James Wheatley each had two goals for the Cougars (13-7) as well.
“He's a very unselfish player,” Gray said of Koster. “Every now and then when you need something, you just look at him and say, 'We need a little push or a spark.' He'll either do it through a goal or an assist. When you're physical on him, he can still make the play.”
Oakton will face its nemesis, Chantilly, Saturday at 7 p.m. at Westfield High School with a state title on the line. The Cougars will be looking to win their fourth championship under Gray, while the Chargers are making their first appearance in a state final.
“We're going to play our game,” Gray said of the game plan for Saturday. “We're two very well-balanced teams. It could go either way, it's just been going their way the first three times. The last two games, I thought we got better. We're just hoping the balls will go our way here and there and we'll come out with a different result.”
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