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Jefferson back on top
Long before his team began its defense of last spring's Virginia AAA state title, Jefferson boys soccer coach Sean Burke knew at least two concrete things about his team: He had one of the district's most talented goalkeepers in senior Ariel Brown, and one of its most prolific scorers in senior forward Ayman Abunimer.Add another known commodity to that list: senior midfielder Robert MacGregor.
MacGregor finished off a feed from senior forward Bryan Bleda in the 49th minute of last Friday's Liberty District title game, lifting the No. 2 seed Colonials to a 2-0 win over top-seeded Stone Bridge (11-4).
"It's really a tribute to the boys, that they've worked so hard," said Burke, whose team improved to 12-1-2 and won its second straight district title. "I think we're all a little surprised, but if you work hard ... you give yourself the opportunity to do well."
Burke credited his team's increased focus on video analysis as the primary reason for its tournament success -- Jefferson outscored its opponents, 6-0, in three games -- but not even a 62-inch, high-definition screen could clarify what happened on MacGregor's tally.
A player who's known more for his ability to create a scoring opportunity than to chase one down, MacGregor split a pair of Stone Bridge defenders to run down Bleda's pass, tapping it home with a sensational individual effort. Although the tactical points of MacGregor's effort might've come as a surprise to some, the timeliness of it most certainly did not.
"We had a couple games this year where he scored big goals like that," said Burke, whose team played host to Lee last night in the first round of the Northern Region tournament, which ended after The Times went to press. "I'm surprised he got down to the end of the ball because he likes to receive the ball and play it in. For him to chase the ball down between two defenders is just amazing.
"It's just what you want a senior player to do: show some leadership at a crucial moment. It changed the whole landscape of the game."
If MacGregor's goal changed the landscape of the game, Abunimer (Falls Church) and Brown (Vienna) trimmed and pruned it for the final 30-plus minutes. Abunimer notched his eighth goal of the season only five minutes later, finishing off a pass from junior midfielder Justin Etkin to preserve the lead.
Meanwhile, Brown continued his rock-solid performance in goal, thwarting a Stone Bridge attack that had posted six markers in its previous two Liberty tournament contests.
“I know I have a strong defense supporting me,” said Brown, whose team has allowed goals to only Herndon and Woodson this season. “I had a feeling we could maintain the lead, but Stone Bridge is one of the better offensive teams we've played, so that second one was quite a relief to have.”
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