Region 4D West Final

VHSL June 2, 2022 - 7:00 pm
Blacksburg High School

Results

Club1st Half2nd HalfScoreOutcome
Blacksburg011Win
Salem000Loss

Recap

Blacksburg defeated Salem for the 4th time this season to win the Region 4D Championship and earn a home game in the State Quarter Final next Tuesday.

In the 62nd minute, Elayna Weatherspoon served a corner kick and McKenzie Cheynet pounced on a loose ball scoring for the game winning goal.

Blacksburg outshot Salem 11 to 2 on the evening. Blacksburg’s Paige Miller recorded 1 save to earn the shutout while Salem’s keeper stepped up with 4 big saves. Blacksburg recorded 8 corner kicks and Salem had 1 corner kicks.

Quoted from the Roanoke Times.

Blacksburg girls shut out Salem to win Region 4D soccer title

LACKSBURG — Salem knows better than any other team in the state how difficult it is to score on Blacksburg.

The Bruins (19-0) shut out Salem for the third time in four meetings this season with the latest victory coming by a score of 1-0 on Friday night in the Region 4D girls soccer finals.

“Blacksburg is an incredible program, incredible team and really well-coached,” Salem coach Kayla Wood said.

Wood said the games against Blacksburg highlighted how much Salem has improved over the course of the season.

The Spartans went from losing 5-0 to Blacksburg in April to being one of only two teams to score on them in the district tournament.

On Friday, Blacksburg didn’t score in the first half.

“When you are the underdog, you have to look for those little victories, that’s not their style of play,” Wood said. “We are chipping away. How about a state finals rematch, maybe? A little home town rivalry.”

“When you give a team a set piece like Blacksburg, it’s dangerous,” Wood said.

“Got to get the ball out on touch one.”

Blacksburg kept up the pressure on Kessell throughout the game, and the defense was nearly impenetrable.

Salem’s lone shot in the half came on a free kick that was more than 35 yards away from the goal.

They didn’t have a corner kick until there was less than two minutes left with the officials keeping time on the field and that was defended with ease.

“Defensively we’re a group of 11 on the field,” Blacksburg coach Travis Eschenmann said. “It’s not just four backs. We play as a team. I think when all of us are firing, we combine together and it’s pretty formidable for our opponent.”

The first half was plagued by a series of lightning delays, forcing the players to spend more time in the locker room than they did on the field.

The opening kick was delayed nearly two hours and play was suspended with 20:22 left in the first half of a scoreless game thanks to another lightning strike in the area.

Blacksburg kept the pressure on Salem before and after the delay.

The Bruins had eight shots on goal in the first half with Norin Bortz and Kylene Monaghan both missing uncontested shots over the crossbar.

Blacksburg’s best opportunity came with 12:30 left in the first half when Mila Santsaver-Jones got past Zada Craig with a juke move that gave her a clear path toward the net. She gave herself a difficult shot across her body by fading away from the goal.

Kessell still had to make a diving stop to keep the game scoreless.

“I thought we had some good opportunities,” Eschenmann said.

“It was just one of those nights with the delays and a good opponent that things don’t go your way, but I felt like if we kept playing hard, I thought one would come.”

Details

Date Time League Season
June 2, 2022 7:00 pm VHSL 2022

Venue

Blacksburg High School
3401 Bruin Ln, Blacksburg, VA 24060, USA

Blacksburg

1Paige Miller Goalkeeper
4Elayna Weatherspoon Defender
17Mckenzie Cheynet Midfielder