How Brentsville District improved on a state-qualifying season with a new coach and more sophomores than seniors on their current roster seems to be mystifying teams in the Northwestern District.

But that may spread soon to the entire commonwealth as the Tigers continue to be on cruise control as the regular season winds to a close.

Last Wednesday, Brentsville (12-1 overall) topped its nearest rival Kettle Run (6-8) 3-0 on a rainy afternoon for its twelfth straight win before finally falling to Sherando 3-2 the next day. Juniors Cameron Findlay (two goals) and Eric Jewell (one goal) provided the offensive spark for Brentsville as the Tigers and Cougars entered their last week of play for the regular season.

According to Findlay, coach Nathan Nemerow has managed to gel with the team even though he is only in his rookie year. That has produced positive results for a squad led by long-time coach Chip Rohr, who resigned last year after a dispute with the school's athletic department.

"Oh, it's worked out great. He established a good chemistry with the team before hand. It doesn't seem like he's a new coach to us because the chemistry [has been] working well for us," said Findlay of Nemerow.

As for Kettle Run, it's hard to imagine how the Cougars could have entered the game any more frustrated, coming off four consecutive one-goal losses that knocked the team below .500 after a promising start to the season.

Sophomore team captain Ryan Schmidt actually performed well in the goal box despite giving up three first-half goals. Brentsville attacked constantly, dominating ball control throughout the first half and kept most of the action centered on Kettle Run's side of the field.

"They were always going down the sidelines and they'd always have that sideline open, and we just need to cover that next time," said Schmidt.

One of the those instances came on the third goal of the game when Findlay broke open from Schmidt's right side after a pass from sophomore Javon Harris. Findlay then fired off a rocket grounder that the Kettle Run goalie lunged for with outstretched arms as he dove to his left.

But the ball zipped to the back of the goal anyway with just over 10 minutes remained in the first half.

Schmidt rebounded in the second half as he shut out the Tigers' offense while the Kettle Run attacked Brentsville consistently for the next 20-plus minutes.

"We were pressuing them. We got a couple turnovers, but we just couldn't capitalize," said Schmidt, adding that the team changed its mentality in the second half.

"We wanted to come out to win it," he said.

Kettle Run's offense showcased that new-found mentality from the get-go in the second half as sophomores Brandon Hartman and Andy Bourdeau brought the ball deep into Brentsville territory.

But for all of their offensive brilliance, Brentsville proved to be equally dominate defensively. Bryce Heltzel, Cole Farmer and Zach Kennedy teamed up to diffuse the Cougars' early threat.

Brentsville's resilience in the face of adversity came due to a combination of a smart ball handling and an aggressive defensive style, anchored by senior goal keeper Mike Maddigan.

"Mike's a great keeper. He'll come out for anything," said Findlay, noting the senior's penchant for making good decisions while playing tough.

Maddigan routinely challenged Kettle Run along the perimeter of the goal box and would run up way past the white lines to boot a ball, kicking one such shot all the way back to Schmidt on the other side of the field early in the second half.

The junior forward Findlay explained that defensive execution managed to keep the Cougars at bay when pressure mounted during the remaining 40 minutes.

"Well, our defense was working it around great. We kept switching it well and when we got the open chances, we just followed it through," said Findlay.