Leesville Road boys soccer
Leesville Road's Bo Burns (9) looks to attack Sanderson's John Perfetti (4) during Monday's soccer match. Burns didn't score on this play, but he tallied two goals during the Pride's 4-3 win.
Pride soccer sacks Sanderson
Monday night Sanderson senior Glenn Scott notched three goals — his 23rd, 24th and 25th scores of the season — but with less than 10 minutes remaining against Leesville Road, it was Pride senior Ryan Fleming who delivered the game-winner.
Tied at 3-3, the Pride's Chris Hawthorne sent a kick toward the front of the Spartan net and, after the ball was deflected, Fernando Castellanos popped it up for Fleming to finish off, clinching a 4-3 victory.
"I was just standing at the top of the 18, Fernando flipped it up and I just saw the volley, and thought, 'This is mine', and I hit it in," Fleming recalled after the game.
With Cap-7 Conference action coming to an end next week, the win gives the Pride — who hold down third place — a little breathing room in its chase for a postseason berth. (The league's top four teams receive playoff spots — unless one of the bottom three squads captures the conference tournament title.)
After a 2-3 start to league play, the Pride have lost just once in its last five contests, including a 1-1 tie with Broughton — ranked No. 2 in the state — Oct. 5.
According to Fleming, Leesville's solid play can be traced back to the squad's improved rapport.
Highlights from Leesville Road's 4-3 win at Sanderson Monday.
"Our team has been meshing a lot more, and we have a lot more chemistry," the senior said. "We have definitely cut down on our mistakes, too. Plus, we have found the positions people need to be in for us to win."
Leesville Road coach Chip Stone explained Fleming helped pull out the victory not only with his late-game goal, but with his play elsewhere on the field as well.
"Ryan was in the middle, winning so many balls, and I think that is the thing that steadied us," the coach said. "We like him up top because he wins so many balls there, too, but we were losing that battle [in the middle] and they weren't nearly as dangerous when he was there."
As most observers know, the Spartans' offensive attack is one of the state's most dynamic units, and Scott got Sanderson on the board early, scoring off an assist from Taylor Wyatt in the 10th minute.
But four minutes later, the Pride responded as Bo Burns scored off a free-kick rebound, knotting the game at 1-1.
Scott struck again in the 26th minute, perfectly heading a J.P. Rafferty cross.
And again, Leesville rebounded quickly as Kyle Davis slipped past the Sanderson defense one minute later and poked a kick past Sanderson keeper Matt Boyd.
"He is uncanny at putting little touches on the ball and putting it in the net," Stone said of Davis.
The squad played evenly through the next 26 minutes until Burns streaked past the Spartan defenders on the breakaway and tallied his second goal.
The score came in the 54th minute, putting the Pride up 3-2.
Following the contest, Stone explained Burns' attacking style best, calling it "relentless."
Not to be outdone, Scott answered three minutes later, recording a hat trick with his third goal.
The goal came when Leesville failed to clear a ball, and Wyatt deflected the ball to Scott who nailed the kick from about 23 yards out.
The Pride didn't quit, however, and 13 minutes later Fleming notched the winner.
Stone lauded Sanderson's attack, saying of Scott and Rafferty, "those guys are so good; it's very hard to stop them."
The coach added "there is no question that Sanderson and Broughton are the two best teams [in the conference]."
As for his own squad, Stone pointed out the Pride have played solid soccer for the past two weeks — in even defeat, explaining Wakefield's two goals in a 2-0 loss Oct. 7 came off free kicks.
"Our guys are playing really good soccer right now, and the thing is we are improving every game. Every game," he said, repeating himself for emphasis.
Stone acknowledged the Pride's 6-8-1 record might throw people off, but he's proud of his squad's results — especially considering the level of competition Leesville has faced.
"Everybody is worried about eight losses, but if you keep improving all the time, what does it get you? It gets you a lot further if you were just playing some chumps," he said. "We might have played a difficult schedule, but it is going to pay off. If you don't get killed doing it — if you survive — it really makes you good."
Fleming wants to see the Pride carry its momentum not only into its last two games, against Millbrook Wednesday and WF-R Oct. 21, but into the postseason.
"We really needed a win after our loss to Wakefield, and we just went out and worked hard," he said. "And it should give us motivation and hopefully we can bring it to the conference playoffs and the state playoffs."
Sanderson visits WF-R Wednesday, Oct. 14, and finishes up its conference schedule hosting Enloe Oct. 19 and visiting Broughton Oct. 21.
