Wayne Country Day boots East Wake Academy, earns first victory of the season

By Rudy Coggins
Published in Sports on August 29, 2012 1:51 PM

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Wayne Country Day needed an additional 131/2 minutes to break a frustrating, three-plus match scoring drought Tuesday afternoon.

The Chargers halted their winless streak, too.

Jack Langston supplied the eventual game-winning goal in the 46th minute and WCDS survived East Wake Academy, 3-2, on a rain-soaked pitch.

"I felt our team played half of the first half brilliantly, which is what we've been practicing. We got a little bit tired as the first half wore on," first-year Chargers head coach Steve Ellis said.

"The second half we picked up (but) we kind of eased off a little bit."

The Chargers (1-2-1 overall) dominated possession from the opening kickoff. The midfield dictated the tempo and knocked balls into open space, which created numerous scoring chances.

Senior tri-captain Cody Neal put Wayne Country Day on the board in the 14th minute. He dribbled between two Eagle defenders into the penalty area and connected on a goal between keeper Justin Tart and the near post.

The goal ended a 333-minute, 30-second scoreless streak that started with the Chargers' season-ending loss to Hickory Christian in the opening round of the N.C. Independent Schools Athletic Association 1-A playoffs a year ago.

"(Spacing) is something we've worked on the past two weeks because we've been playing a bit narrow, playing more individually ... players who want to do everything themselves," Ellis said. "So we looked into playing limited possession on the ball to create more chances and it showed today. The midfield really worked hard for each other.

"When that happens, everything else is easy."

Eight minutes after Neal's strike, Wayne Country Day benefited from an own goal off of a corner kick. Langston and a couple of teammates crowded the 6-yard box on the shot, and Langston said the ball deflected off of an East Wake defender.

Langston converted a one-on-one breakaway early in the second half, which padded the Chargers' advantage at 3-0.

A steady rain began to fall and play became chippy midway through the second half. Constant stoppages on petty fouls disrupted Wayne Country Day's offensive rhythm, and kept the Eagles (0-3-0) within striking distance.

East Wake avoided its third consecutive shutout in the 65th minute on a questionable whistle. The Chargers cleared a free kick attempt, but the midfield official gave the Eagles a second chance because the play occurred before he signalled the restart.

The second attempt glanced off of Zach Brewer-Kirby's gloves and into the lower back portion of the net. Angelo Cabrera converted a goal in the 70th minute when his shot deflected off a sliding Brewer-Kirby and bounced into the net.

"We had a few calls go against us, which kind of rattled the boys for five or 10 minutes," said Ellis, whose team was whistled for 24 fouls and drew one yellow card. "But they pulled it back together and grinded out the win."