Herndon FC Wins State Cup

On a windy weekend in Virginia Beach the Herndon FC posted their 3^rd and 4^th shut out of the state cup tournament to become Virginia state champions.

The Semi final against SOCA Express started with the FC setting the early tempo dominating possession and getting the better of the chances with Jordan Durst and Jake Straub both testing the SOCA keeper early on. With the FC continuing to dominate the game the first half drew to a close with a free kick flicked on to the back post by FC’s Alex Streitmater to be agonizingly out of reach for the sliding FC striker Emmanuel Korvah.

The second half saw a similar story with the FC creating good opportunities but failing to find the all important goal. The FC were forced into changes midway into the second half with a head injury to Michael Morningstar forcing the player off the field. The introduction of Dean Dersomonian saw the player involved straight away as he found himself in space at the back post and he managed to guide a difficult volley on target forcing the SOCA keeper to make a good save. With the game seeming to be heading to over time the FC created their best chance of the game when a good combination through the midfield sprang FC striker Jordan durst in behind the SOCA back line with the only the onrushing keeper to beat a last ditch lunge from a SOCA defender brought the striker down only inches outside the Penalty box. With time slowly ticking away, FC captain Patrick McLaughlin, set the ball on the edge of the area, and hit a beautifully placed free kick into the upper 90, to score the game winning goal with a matter of minutes remaining.

In a tense final game against the Richmond Kickers, the wind was to play a large factor. The FC decided to play against the wind in the first half and once again the back four of Strietmater, Weiler, Bednarek and Morningstar held firm, and with goalkeeper Jack Clarke (other FC Goalkeeper Gunnar Bedford on the bench) making a big save midway into the first half when the Richmond Kickers centre forward had broken through. With little in the way of chances, the half came to a close goalless.

With the wind behind them the FC began to dominate large portions of the second half although Richmond still posed a threat on the counter attack, the FC created a number of second half chances and a stinging shot from Oliver Dethier from 30 yards out narrowly crept over the crossbar. Midway through the second half great defensive work from Elias Burrell kept the FC in the game where a good shooting opportunity for Richmond was denied by a perfectly timed tackle from the FC outside mid. Once again late in the game FC captain Patrick McLaughlin would have an impact on the game. After good work from Dominic Galleli to switch the ball, the ball was played back across the top of the box where FC striker Jordan Durst saw his shot blocked by a Kickers defender, the ball bounced kindly for McLaughlin who calmly turned the ball and thundered a drive into the far bottom corner from 12 yards out. Despite throwing numbers forward the FC played out the remaining minutes and Substitute Ben Hart created a good opportunity for the FC to extend their lead. As the final whistle blew the players had the chance to finally celebrate. We now look forward to representing Herndon and the State of Virginia in Regional’s in Portland Maine at the end of June.