1A SOCCER: Eagles tumble in east semifinals

By Rudy Coggins
Published in Sports on November 14, 2015 11:35 PM

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TEACHEY -- Wallace-Rose Hill head soccer coach Mike Graybar did his homework on Rosewood.

Shorten the long throw-ins.

Closely mark Ethan Chapin.

And keep a watchful eye on Zack Barnes and Daniel Alberto, too.

The Bulldogs followed their coaches' scheme to perfection Saturday afternoon during a 5-0 win in eastern semifinal-round play of the N.C. High School Athletic Association Class 1-A playoffs.

"I told them we came in with a defensive mindset that we were almost going to get run over and defend, defend, defend (and) put Ethan up top and let him do his thing. Hopefully he could get a couple of goals," RHS head coach Eddie Maldonado said.

"They knew from the start they had to stop Ethan. He's so big and strong, hard to handle. They did a great job with their homework."

Chapin and Barnes, the Eagles' top two goal scorers, combined for just two shots on goal. Backup keeper Ethan Carlson scooped up Chapin's shot, which snapped his streak of five consecutive games with a goal.

Barnes' attempt sailed beyond the left post.Overall, Rosewood (17-6-1 overall) placed seven shots on frame.

"They did a great job," Maldonado said.

Wallace-Rose Hill (20-4-1) pressured Eagles goalie Tucker Chapin during the first 15 minutes. Chapin (eight saves) got help from Skyler Price on a point-blank shot inside the box, and Chapin blocked an attempt by Jesse Cruz after a defensive misclear.

The Bulldogs broke through in the 18th minute.

Rosewood sophomore defender Collin Carter committed a hard foul inside the box, which led to a yellow card and a penalty kick. Jose Carcamo lined up the ball and fired a goal-scoring shot opposite Chapin.

W-RH scored again in the 30th minute when Wilmer Ortiz crossed the ball to Ryan Graybar, who ripped a laser to the back post.

Maldonado had seen his team rally from behind throughout the season, including Thursday against Granville Central. The Bulldogs, the two-time defending state champions, made sure the Eagles didn't stage another comeback.

Javier Maldonado punched in an unassisted goal 67 seconds into the second half to make it 3-0.

"That might have been the dagger for us," Rosewood's Maldonado said. "(We) continued to play hard and tried to do stuff right up until the very end. When you play a team of that caliber, when you give them a chance, they're going to take advantage of it."

The Bulldogs got goals from Junior Pacheco and Julio Fernandez to wrap up their 16th consecutive postseason win. Wallace-Rose Hill has won all three playoff meetings against Rosewood in shutout fashion since 2011.

"Dag-gone we had a great run," said Maldonado, who hugged his four seniors -- Ethan Chapin, Barnes, Hayden Amodeo and Jordan Price after the game. The quartet helped lead Rosewood to a program-best 17 wins and its first-ever appearance in the eastern semifinals.

"I can't be prouder of that team with the run that they put in, you know?