Blue Devils offense has come alive

The CCHS boys soccer team went on the attack Tuesday against Liberty, taking aim from here, there and everywhere.

As the Blue Devils launched shot after shot at the goal, they sent a message to the rest of the Cedar Run District, just in time for tournament play: This offense is dangerous.

A month ago, that statement might not have held up under scrutiny. Though talented, the Blue Devils didn’t always light up the scoreboard.
So CCHS coach Tim Kearney tweaked things a little bit. He pulled talented scorer Carter Mills back into the midfield a bit more. A subtle move you wouldn’t even notice if you weren’t looking for it. It completely changed the offense.

“It lets us possess the ball a little more and we can move up as a team and attack,” Kearney said Tuesday. “We were moving players up in numbers (Tuesday).”

They came from all angles Tuesday, subjecting the Liberty goalkeeper to 34 on-the-edge-of-your-seat shots. They walked away with a 2-0 victory and a whole ball bag full of near-misses.

It was soccer on Red Bull, a full-speed-ahead, I-wonder-what’s-going-to-happen-next game. And it was fun.

The Blue Devils (4-8-1) always had the pieces to be a threat. Midfielders Kyle Masson and Bram Sims are great with the ball. Mills, Eduar Reyes, Jimmy Tweedie and company make for a potent attack. Heck, even defender Matt Willett came the length of the field to join a scrum in front of the goal Tuesday, eventually firing a shot into the back of the net.

The Blue Devils thought they’d have a solid team this year, one that could challenge the Manassas-area teams that dominate the district.
But CCHS stumbled out of the gate, in part because of an inability to consistently generate offense.

Tuesday was an eye-opener, the type of game where pretty much everything goes right. Even when the Blue Devils were missing, they were missing by a hair.
“It’s definitely going to pick up our team before our next game,” Willett said.

That next game is the season finale against Loudoun Valley Monday, a team CCHS already knocked off once.  Then on to the Cedar Run tournament, where it’s win or go home.

The Blue Devils’ best chance? Come out firing.

Jason Simcoe can be reached at 825-0771 ext. 166 or