Boys Soccer falls in Regional finals

It was a banner night for last year's two Class 4A state soccer champions Monday on Richard Montgomery High's artificial turf field. The Magruder boys and Quince Orchard girls captured 4A West Region titles in distinctive, yet equally compelling, 1-0 victories.

The Colonels (10-2-5 record in 2008), despite earning their second state crown last fall, entered the boys regional final at 5 p.m. as underdogs. Top-seeded Churchill hadn't lost a single game all season.

But the Rockville school shocked the Montgomery 4A West Division-champion Bulldogs early. Senior forward Collins Mbu drilled a shot into the lower left-hand corner of the goal less than 5 minutes into the contest, off a deft pass from midfielder Girish Chaskar.

With the win, Magruder earned a trip back to the 4A state semifinals, where it will play either Perry Hall or Parkville - both Baltimore County schools - Saturday at 7:30 p.m at CCBC/Essex in Baltimore County.

This year, Churchill featured the top talent in the fleet-footed Dansky, who led the county with 26 goals. But its season ended in a repeat performance, a second-straight one-goal loss to the Colonels in the regional finals.

"We've been good, but we underachieved," said Dansky. "It's the only word I can say. It's not that we don't play well, but we just get unlucky. Something bad always happens to us."