By Scott Ratcliffe
Published: May 9, 2008

Charlottesville and Western Albemarle battled it out for the regular-season Jefferson District title on Thursday, and the Black Knights came through in a must-win situation to secure a first-round bye in the district tournament with a 1-0 win.
Vermont-bound senior striker Emily Perrin was the hero for Charlottesville, as she converted the best scoring opportunity the Knights saw at the 17:30 mark of the second half. Perrin has made quite a name for herself in her four years, and her game-winner Thursday clinched Charlottesville’s third straight regular-season crown.
“[Perrin] is a sensational player,” said first-year Charlottesville coach Fernando Opere following the victory. “She has been a real captain and leader of the team. She has the size, the control and the fire, and that’s very important.”
Perrin was assisted by freshman forward Olivia Levine, who did a solid job threading the needle to allow an open shot in stride.
“[Perrin] is always right there in front of the goal, and sometimes it’s hard to finish, but on that occasion, she took advantage of the cross and put it in,” Opere said.
Western Albemarle’s sophomore goalkeeper Lexy Eckerle’s status was questionable for Thursday’s game following an injury in the previous game against Monticello, but she came up with seven crucial saves that kept the Warriors’ chances alive, and had shut down Perrin and the Black Knights prior to the goal.
“[Levine] has a really strong service,” Perrin said, “so I knew if I needed to get a good touch, a quick close shot.
“I had taken a couple of shots high and Lexy’s a great keeper and she saved all of them, so I knew if I just hit it low and to the corner with some pace I knew it would go in. So I did everything in my power to get there.”
Western head coach Kevin Murphy felt for his senior class of forwards Noaa Spiekermann and Stephanie Adams, midfielders Kirsten Abraham and Cory Murphy and defender Anna Almy not being able to win a championship in its final year, but was proud of their effort.
“Anytime you meet Charlottesville, it’s always a battle,” said Murphy. “I feel bad for my seniors, it would have been nice to take out Charlottesville in their last year here. I’m real proud of the girls, I couldn’t ask for much more from them.”
The Warriors lost a 1-0 match to the Black Knights earlier this season, but Murphy knows that their paths could cross once more. Western (7-5-2, 6-2-2 Jefferson District) has two more regular-season games next week against Orange County and Monticello and can still secure the second seed heading into the tournament, which begins one week from today.
Charlottesville (13-1-1, 11-1-0) will have over a week off to prepare for its semifinal matchup in the tournament. The Black Knights, who lost to Hidden Valley in the Group AA championship in 2006, hope to make a return trip to the state tournament. In that season, Charlottesville won 21 games in a row, including 14 shutouts.
“We definitely want to win the district tournament, we want to bring home that championship,” Perrin said.
“I’d really like to get to the regional finals, that way we know we have a bid to states. It would be great to show up there again.”