BOYS SOCCER: Stonewall rally sinks Wilson

QUICKSBURG – Midway through the first half, Josh Miller pumped his fist as he ran toward a sea of green jerseys that quickly enveloped him in high fives and hugs.

The Wilson Memorial forward had just slipped a shot to the left of Stonewall Jackson keeper Hayden Miller and gave the Green Hornets a 1-0 lead.

It didn’t last long.

Seconds later, the Generals retorted and never looked back — spending the rest of Thursday’s Shenandoah District boys soccer championship stymieing the Hornets’ offense and taking advantage of every defensive miscue Wilson made on their way to a 3-1 victory.

Despite the loss, the Hornets move on to Monday’s Region B quarterfinal at George Mason. The Generals welcome Manassas Park to Quicksburg on the same day.

Josh Miller’s goal was an exercise in tenacity as the senior fought his way through three Stonewall defenders, lost the ball, but quickly recovered it before fighting his way free at the top of the penalty area. Shaking the defenders away, he saw Hayden Miller playing on the front post, “so I decided to rip it back post,” Josh Miller said.

He succeeded despite the suffocating defense.

“They mark up on me pretty hard,” he said. “But I fought through it; got the shot opportunity and I took it.”

“That’s Josh,” said Wilson coach Kyle Congestion. “He’s strong and can fight through.”

It was the last time the Hornets would celebrate and all Miller could do was watch from the bench after getting kicked in the knee with 55 minutes left to play in the match.

Off the restart, the Generals quickly moved the ball to the Wilson side of the pitch and a defensive breakdown turned into a one-on-one situation with Stonewell’s Juan Flores and Hornets keeper Will Baker.

Flores easily poked the ball past Baker for the equalizer.

It was a classic soccer mistake, Congleton said, where the first five minutes after a goal turn into the most important.

“We’re thinking that we have the momentum and if you even back down at all, they’re back in your face,” he said. “And [Stonewall is] a very good squad. You can’t back down at all.”

Before the first half ended, another defensive breakdown turned into another one-on-one — this time with Stonewall’s Armando Moreno-Paniagua. The Generals’ forward pushed it into the net for a 2-1 lead that would hold.

Congelton said, in order to rest some of his starters for Monday’s Region B match with the Mustangs, he shuffled a few players around and, “that created a little of confusion in the back, I guess,” he said. “We got caught watching a bit.”

The Generals would add another goal in the second half, but in the final 20 minutes the Wilson offense came back to life, but could never knot the score.

Winning the co-player of the year was little consolation to Wilson’s Miller and winning coach of the year in the Shenandoah did little for Congelton.

“I would have rather come out of here with a district trophy,” he said.