Both Meridian Soccer Squads Advance to Regional Finals

by Ryan McCafferty

Supporters of Meridian Mustang athletics were treated to a trifecta of home games on Tuesday night, with both soccer teams hosting Culpeper County and baseball playing against Caroline. All three teams had a spot in the Regional Finals – and an automatic entry into the state tournament – at stake, and two out of three were able to earn their way there.

The girls’ soccer team played first, and in a low-scoring affair, held serve with a 2-0 victory. Madie Miller scored both goals, the first one midway through the opening frame just moments after a golden opportunity had barely stayed out of the net, and the second one after the break to pad Meridian’s lead. They will now travel to Brentsville for the Regional Finals on Thursday, but win or lose, they’ve punched their ticket to the state tournament.

Afterwards it was the boys’ turn to take the field, and they made their statement early and often in a 7-0 rout. Jack Ettinger and Alex Gardner scored in the opening ten minutes and then Luke Borg and Felix Green added tallies later in the first half, while after the break Ettinger and Green both scored again. Then, Fletcher Saaty capped things off by converting the metaphorical extra point. Even better for the boys was that Goochland upset top seeded Manassas Park on the road, meaning the Mustangs will be at home on Thursday as they play for the regional title.

Meanwhile, baseball unfortunately saw its season come to an end, as they were unable to hold serve against visiting Caroline. Caroline went up 1-0 in the first inning and then expanded their lead to 3-0 in the fourth before the Mustangs finally got on the board in the bottom of the fifth on a Mason Duval single. A three-run seventh inning by the visitors then put the game out of reach, although a late Meridian rally was able to make things interesting as they fell 6-3.