And the Mill Marches On

In the ecstatic aftermath of Watkins Mill’s 3-1 playoff win over Urbana on Thursday night, Coach Jeff Heckert gathered his players and reminded them of the singular focus they've shared since the season started.

“This is meant to be,” he said. “We’re not done. We have three left.”

Three more wins would give Watkins Mill its first-ever state title.

The Wolverines took Step Two of Five on their home field’s cramped confines, willing their way to victory with their trademark brand of soccer, swarming to the ball and barely giving the Hawks breathing room, and pushing relentlessly into the offensive third until Urbana’s defense cracked under the sheer abundance of scoring chances.

Early on, the outcome wasn’t so obvious.

It was Urbana putting on the pressure at the outset and Watkins Mill that looked tentative. But as the game unfurled, the Wolverines found their rhythm, and seized control 15 minutes in.

They had more chances and created more dangerous situations in the first half, including a half-dozen shots and a fierce header by Obed Agyei in the 24th minute that slammed off the crossbar.

With five minutes left before the break, Oscar Carcamo worked the ball down to the left end line, placed a pass to a streaking Agyei at the corner of the box. Out of the corner of his eye, Agyei, a four-year starter, saw Urbana keeper Brian Howell leaning toward the far post, so he buried his sliding shot in the opposite direction.

The goal set off a wild celebration from Watkins Mill’s biggest crowd of the year. As that elation lingered, Urbana came right back with the clock winding down on the first half, and William Eskay hit Eduardo Garcia in stride up the left flank, who netted the equalizer as Watkins Mill goalie Rolando Alba tried to close the gap.

During the break, Heckert told his players to be ready next time around.

“We said at halftime, when we get our goal—we were confident it was going to come—the next five minutes are crucial. We said, ‘This is why you’re seniors. You want to be stars? Go make plays.’”

Senior striker William Yougnia—the team’s leading scorer with 12 goals—answered that call in the 59th minute, pummeling a loose ball that Urbana hadn’t cleanly cleared.

This time, there were no lapses. It was Watkins Mill that scored a minute later as Jhoan Velastigui netted his first goal of the season, also on a loose ball in front of the net.

The rousing win spurred superlatives from Heckert, who continues to marvel at a team that is playing better and better as the stakes go up.

“Last year, we would’ve lost this game. But we just believe,” Heckert said. “That’s the best team we’ve faced all year, no disrespect to the other teams. They answered right back. We had the momentum going, we had the goal, and they came right back at us. And the first 10 minutes of the second half, they had the better of the play. It just shows you what we can do—bang bang, and we got two.”

In the post-game huddle, Heckert made clear that their season’s arc will be fulfilled not by two playoff wins, but by five. That quest continues Tuesday night against Linganore, who beat Einstein on Friday night in the 3A West’s other semifinal.

Linganore has been in Watkins Mill’s crosshairs ever since the Lancers dealt them a stinging 3-0 defeat in last year’s regional final. The two have not played this year, and both appear to be even better this time around.

Urbana is as good a measure as any for comparing the two powerhouses. The Hawks split their games against Linganore (13-2) this year, falling to the Lancers 3-2 on Oct. 11, then beating them 3-0 in the Frederick County championship on Oct. 22. But whereas the Wolverines were able to stifle Urbana in the cramped confines of Wolverine Stadium, Linganore will have vastly more room to work on their wide-open turf field.

“It’s going to be a much different game than you saw here tonight,” Urbana Coach Scott Schartner said after Thursday night’s game. “I think it’s going to be a very, very even match. Linganore is very comfortable on their field, very comfortable on that surface. But if Watkins Mill comes out and pressures and plays as hard as they did tonight, they’re probably going to do well. But Linganore is a very dangerous team, especially with their two guys up top, they just do very dangerous things for them.”

Watkins Mill’s defense was the biggest question mark coming into the season. It shored up as junior centerback Sergio Mosquera acclimated to the shift from midfield, freshman centerback Kedin Rodriguez emerged as an every-game starter, and mid-season shifts pulled Patrick Pato and Ariel Rodriguez into more defensive roles.

Watkins Mill has since gone on a nine-game winning streak in which they’ve outscored their opponents 29-2. The team is oozing determination and confidence; to a man, they say the difference Tuesday night is that they’ll be ready.

“Last year, we thought we knew, but that experience wasn’t there. This year, the experience is there,” Agyei said. “All we have to do is keep attacking, keep pushing, and we can take it all the way.”