The Courage 94 Red Boys completed an incredible run through the Virginia State Cup Tournament, being crowned the Champions after a 1-0 win over the Richmond Kickers.
After making their way through the preliminary rounds of the tournament, Courage 94 Red Boys met the SYC Fusion for the semi-final match in Virginia Beach on Saturday May 17. The game proved to be a testing ground for the eventual State Champion Courage side. The game was played to an even draw until around the 25th minute of the first half when Coach Markiewicz subbed in Ben Ogedegbe to provide a spark in the attack. According to Coach Markiewicz, "I put Ben in because he finds a way to put balls in the back of the net when the ball is on his foot in the box." Ogedegbe provided just that, slipping the ball with a well placed shot pass the Fusion’s goalkeeper. With the 1-0 advantage, Courage did not stop attacking. With 10 minutes left in the half Brandon English netted a header off of a Courage corner kick to add to the lead and make it 2-0 at halftime. Going into the second half, the Courage team was confident they could maintain the lead. However, SYC felt they could still come back. The Fusion was able to press the Courage defense deep into their own end and scored a goal to make it 2-1 with 20 minutes left in the game. While the Fusion was pressing more players into the attack and putting the Courage defense under a lot of pressure, the Courage boys were able to "buckle down and keep it safe in the defensive end," according to Markiewicz. The game ended in a 2-1 win for the Courage and gave them a birth into the championship game.
The Courage side then faced the Richmond Kickers on Sunday May 18 in the State Cup Championship match. The game proved to be an even match until the Courage attack was able to penetrate the strong backline of the Kickers and notch what would prove to be the game winning goal. The goal came from a skillful move and run from Conor Noguiera. Noguiera received the ball just over the half line, beating one player and then cutting into towards goal with speed. Noguiera struck a shot off the dribble that the Richmond keeper could not handle. The ball rebounded to Joel Teston who was framing the goal as Noguiera made his run and shot attempt. Teston pounced on the rebound and sent the ball with force into the back of the net. The Courage team celebrated their go ahead goal, but were then able to compose themselves to close out the game and hoist the championship trophy. Coach Markiewicz summed up the experience, "I am very happy for these boys. This team has been through a lot in the past few years and has come a long way. It was satisfying to see the team able to maintain its focus and consistency throughout the tournament. This tournament has been rewarding for everyone. Hard work truly pays off. It is also proof that the Courage way is working and our developmental system of providing appropriate development is paying off. My hats off to Aaron Brunner who had this team until last year. He set the foundation with this team and I was able to work from that."
Congratulations to the Courage 94 Red Boys on being crowned Virginia State Cup Champions.
The team will travel to Maine in June to face the regions State Champions in Regional competition.
Team members pictured above from left to right. Backline: Derek Donnelly (Team Manager), Brandon English, Matt Capozza, Robbie Gillette, Joel Teston, Ben Ogedegbe, Greg Toms, Sheldon Sullivan, Mason Fish, Mark Markiewicz (Coach). Frontline: Conor Noguiera (captain), Zach Hopkins, Conner Donnelly, Kean Gore, Anthony Sarago, Bryan Milleson, Greg Boehme (captain)
