Albemarle pounds Woodbridge to advance

Five minutes had passed in Albemarle’s Northwest Region quarterfinal matchup with Woodbridge, and the Patriots were on the short end of the scoreboard. The contrast of styles between the run-and-gun Patriots and methodical Vikings appeared to favor the visitors.
The trend didn’t last long. Albemarle conceded first, then reeled off the next 13 goals en route to a 15-3 victory on Wednesday night.
“We came out a little sluggish in the first half,” said Albemarle coach Laurie Pratt. “We haven’t had a game in a week and a half, and it showed. We had some cobwebs, but once we got into a groove, it all fell together.”
Jenna Luna Gibson put Woodbridge (6-7) on top off a free position, but Courtney Elliott equalized off a Rachel Hochstetler feed just a minute and a half later. Elliott then fed Emily Gelzer for the goal that put Albemarle (10-4) on top for good.
“The thing that made it difficult for us was that we did not mark up properly,” said Woodbridge coach Casey Claiborne. “We were playing a zone, but we weren’t covering the cutters, and they got good shots because of that.”
The Patriots were off to the races from that point, using their usual balanced attack to carve out a 7-1 halftime advantage. Gelzer capped a flurry of four goals in five minutes when she intercepted a lazy clear from Woodbridge
goalkeeper Kelsey Hall and cut in for an easy score.
The ball stayed in Albemarle’s offensive half for nearly the entire duration of the run, and the Vikings’ first shot after Gibson’s goal didn’t come until the 9:45 mark.
Hochstetler tallied two of her three assists during the decisive run before leaving the game with an apparent ankle injury. She returned in the second half.
“When we get her the ball, we’re confident that she’ll do something smart with it,” Pratt said.
The Patriots picked up where they left off after the break, scoring six more goals in the first seven minutes of the second half. Gelzer completed her hat trick off a free position just a minute into the half, then assisted Kathleen Frechette’s scooped goal soon after.
Woodbridge finally got back on the board with 16:30 remaining when Gibson fed Caroline Strand for a goal. Cecelia Pasquale cut the lead to 13-3 after cutting in off an isolation play two minutes later, but it was too little, too late for the visitors as Langley Sloan had a goal and an assist to push the final margin to 12.
Gelzer, Katie Williams and Abby Hendrix all had hat tricks for Albemarle. Frechette and Elliott added two each, while Elliott and Gelzer dished out two assists apiece.
The Patriots advance to the region semifinals at
6 p.m. on Friday night, when they will visit overall top seed Loudoun Valley.
“They’re going to be tough,” Pratt said. “They’re probably the toughest team in our region … We’re going to have to really balance it out and do the little things to make the game come together.”