The George Mason High School girls soccer team defeated Goochland, Clarke County and North Umberland high schools this past week to gain themselves a trip to Radford University for the VHSL state semifinals. Mason beat Goochland last Wednesday 3-0 in the Region B semifinals to take on Clarke County last Saturday in the finals, 3-2. The team kicked off its state-level competition with a victory over North Umberland 6-0 in the quarterfinals Tuesday.
The game against Goochland began with senior captain Leah Roth gaining many opportunities on goal with much help from the aggression and precision of passes from sophomore Claire Trevisan. The ball mainly remaining in the attacking half of the field for Mason. Junior Maggie Mascarenhas was tripped in the box, and junior Hailey Thomas took the penalty kick, which blazed to upper right corner of the net.
Only five minutes later, Leah Roth made a move by the scramble of defenders and passed the ball to the right corner of the net. The remainder of the half was relaxed, but with Mason controlling the ball by a continuous thread of passes.
With their 2-0 lead, Mason fended off Goochland’s counterattacks with help from promising freshman goalie Katie Cheney. Also shining brightly on the field were Trevisan, and freshmen Ava Roth and Jessica Gemond.
To score the final goal of the game, Leah Roth crossed the ball close to the goal, which drew out Goochland’s goalie and left Ava Roth open to tap the ball into the open net. Their 3-0 win over Goochland led Mason to the regional championship against rival Clarke County.
Mason came out striking and managed to score two goals in the beginning minutes of the game against Clarke County. To score their first goal, sophomore Camille Rice sent a through ball to Leah Roth, who shot to the left corner. Maggie Mascarenhas crossed the ball to Ava Roth, who received the cross and chipped the ball to the right corner for the second goal.
The typical competitiveness of Mason-Clarke County match-ups remained throughout the game. Juniors Miska Chehata and Anna Freeman were strong on defense, and Gemond was aggressive on offense.
A free kick close to the goal gave Clarke County the opportunity to place the ball on goal. Cheney made a diving save to block, but the rebound was tapped in. Minutes later, Clarke County scored another into the far right corner of the net.
After a Clarke County defender committed a handball in the box off a corner kick, junior Hailey Thomas shot the ball to the right side.
The halftime score of 3-2 remained throughout the rest of the game despite the scrambled play to prevent Clarke County from tying the game up. Mason’s defense stepped up and played a remarkable game; when it mattered most in the final minutes, Mason was controlling the ball and getting opportunities on goal.
Leah Roth was named Region B Player of the Year, and was given the First Team All Region award, along with Trevisan and Ava Roth. Freshman Mary Keenan was awarded Second Team All Region.
The state quarterfinals against North Umberland began with Leah Roth scoring three goals to give Mason a 3-0 lead at halftime. Off of an assist from Leah Roth, junior Araba Ankuma scored a precision shot to the far left corner. Leah Roth scored twice for a five-goal performance for her last home game as a Mustang.
Mason prevented North Umberland from getting a single shot off and managed 41 shots themselves, giving them an easy win.
Mason will play in the state semifinals Friday at Radford University. Should the team win, Mason would play for the state championship Saturday.
