Field Hockey District Tournament Championships

Woodson Sophomore Shelly Montgomery Scores With :14 Left in Double Overtime to Give the Cavaliers a 2-1 Victory Over Previously Unbeaten Langley; Chantilly, Lake Braddock and Edison Also Capture Its Respective District Tournament Titles

As her teammates hooted and hollered and high-fived behind her, W.T. Woodson sophomore midfielder Shelly Montgomery declared the end of Tuesday night’s, 2-1 overtime victory over Langley in the Liberty District tournament championship game the best part of her life.

Then the giddy teenager paused for an instant — just to make sure she got it right.

“The best part of my life, yeah,” Montgomery said again, nodding her head and smiling broadly. “It was so great.”

With less than 30 seconds remaining in the second overtime session at Madison High, Montgomery picked herself up after a fall and went racing toward the goal, unaware, she said, of just how few seconds remaining before the game would have gone to penalty strokes. Her eyes weren’t on the clock, but on junior forward Mary Beth Barham, who was trying desperately to sneak a shot past Langley senior goal keeper Kelly Germain. But Germain, who Woodson Coach Becky Preston called “phenomenal” in the second overtime period, was rejecting one shot after another off her pads. Her last save of the game was made when she dove to the ground in the right front corner of the goal and took a Barham shot off her mid-section. The move was spectacular — but it also left the back left corner of the goal vulnerable.

W.T. Woodson’s players piled on sophomore Shelly Montgomery in celebration of her championship-winning goal in the closing seconds of double overtime Tuesday night against Langley.

“I
was running down and I saw Mary Beth Barham,” Montgomery said. “And she
just kept on trying to get it in but the goalie just dove right down.
So I just brought it around reverse and flipped it right over her. Oh
my gosh, it was the most amazing feeling in the world.”

The ball hit the back of the goal with just :14 seconds left in the second overtime, and Montgomery and Barham were instantly swarmed and tackled as each Woodson player piled on in celebration.

“When she shot it, it was an amazing shot,” Barham said of Montgomery. “I was just so happy. It feels like being on top of the world. So amazing.”

The win gave the Cavaliers (15-4) their third consecutive Liberty District title, and put the first blemish on the Saxons’ (17-1) record.

“I think it just came down to that they lasted longer than we did,” said Langley Coach Jennifer Robb. “They played the entire second overtime, and we just ran out of juice.”

Woodson struck first in the game when senior defender Sarah Martin fired a shot off a corner with an assist from junior midfielder Becca Geist with 19 minutes, 31 seconds left in the first half. Langley then similarly knotted the score at the 22:25 mark of the second half on a shot by senior forward Katie Knapp off an insert corner pass by senior midfielder Faith Adams.

The Saxons dominated the first overtime period, but failed to capitalize on its numerous offensive chances. The Cavaliers turned it around and controlled the ball for most of the second overtime session, but had also struggled to finish until Barham started the final push down the stretch.

“It had been a back-and-forth game with Langley and I didn’t know which way it was going to go in the end,” said Preston, in her first season leading the Cavaliers. “They kept getting fast breaks down the field and I didn’t know if we’d get anything past their goalie. She was saving everything we shot at her. So just to get it past her … I don’t even know what to say.”

Concorde District Championship
Chantilly 3, Robinson 1

By Jimmy Thomas
DigitalSports.com

Chantilly defeated Robinson Tuesday night at Westfield High to capture the Concorde District tournament championship. The Chargers upset No. 1 seed Oakton to advance to the finale.

	Kaylie Wallace scored in the games’ opening moments to give Chantilly the lead. The Rams would answer, knotting the game at 1 with a goal by senior Erin Duffy assisted by captain Taryn Cutrona. Chantilly forward Rachael Payne then scored to give the Chargers back the lead, 2-1, headed into half time. The Chargers added one more goal midway through the second half for the game’s final margin.  Senior goal keeper Hayley Stewart made a number of outstanding saves leading the way as Chantilly held on for the win. “I kind of felt like we were overdue,” said elated Charger Coach Ralph Chapman. “We have been close before but we never quite got there.”
Chantilly poses with its Concorde District championship trophy after beating Robinson, 3-1, on Tuesday night.

NOTE:  Lake Braddock captured the Patriot District tournament title with a 3-1 victory over South County at Annandale High, and Edison topped Mount Vernon, 1-0, to claim the National District tournament championship at Washington-Lee.

All eight teams that played in their respective title games Tuesday night will be back in action Thursday for the start of the AAA Northern Region tournament. All games will be played on two fields at Oakton High. (Check Oakton’s hotline 703-749-8039 for updates about weather and field conditions.)  The quarterfinals will be held at 6 and 7:30 p.m. on Oct. 29, the semifinals at 7 p.m. on Oct. 31 and the finals at 7 p.m. on Nov. 2.

First-round Northern Region Tournament
Thursday, Oct. 25

3:30 p.m. Madison vs. Chantilly; Yorktown vs. Lake Braddock
5 p.m. Washington-Lee vs. South County; Marshall vs. Oakton
6:30 p.m. West Springfield vs. Mount Vernon; Robinson vs. Langley
8 p.m. Fairfax vs. W.T. Woodson; T.C. Williams vs. Edison