Story and Photos by Rusty Ellis
The Cumberland County Jets took down Scott 2-0 in the Region 3/AA Championship on Thursday night.
The game remained scoreless for a little over 12 minutes, as Gabrial Alva gave the Jets a 1-0 lead with 27:42 remaining in the first half on a penalty kick.
This score held up to halftime, as the first 40 minutes saw the Jets dominate in possession time. It showed in the shot attempts for both teams, as CCHS led 8-1 in that stat at the break.
Alva struck the final blow for the Jets in the second half, as he slipped past the goalkeeper and found the back of the net with 20:51 remaining in the game.
This was enough for the Jets, as they won the region title and earned a home substate match with their 2-0 victory.
“It’s a great feeling honestly,” said CCHS head coach Cub Whitson. “The way that we’ve played and toughed it out, this is a good feeling to be here with this squad.”
Scott’s presence in the region championship could be considered as somewhat of a Cinderella run, but even if that was the case, they made the Jets earn both their goals and the win.
“They did what they wanted to do, and they made it very difficult for us,” Whitson said. “Luckily, we were able to play through that…there were some excellent soccer play by us tonight.”
This gives the Jets a home matchup with Soddy Daisy on Saturday, as Whitson’s squad will try to take a another step closer to Spring Fling.
“It’s huge, and it’s where we expect to be,” Whitson said. “It’s awesome that we get to host. Our field’s in better shape than it’s ever been this time of the year. We’re excited we get to host and show it off…we’re going to have to play great to give ourselves a chance.”
