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Wesley Chapel's defense faces another strong offense
By GREG AUMAN, Times Staff Writer
WESLEY CHAPEL -- The Wildcats are used to being underdogs. They were underdogs in November after winning five games last season and finishing last in the Sunshine Athletic Conference. They were underdogs in the district semifinals, when they upset second-seeded Land O'Lakes to earn their first playoff berth. And they were underdogs on the road Thursday when they knocked off Crystal River in the region quarterfinals. That said, tonight, four hours from home and facing the No. 1 team in Class 2A, Wesley Chapel is quite the underdog. "They're one of the better teams in the state if not the best," first-year coach Brian Dorkowski said of tonight's opponent, St. Augustine Nease. "They've scored a lot of goals, and they've just been dominant. I spoke to a coach who has played them, and they don't really have a whole lot of weaknesses. He didn't have one thing to point to as 'Attack this' or 'Attack that." Again, the Wildcats have been here before, and their emergence this season has been built upon convincing victories against presumably better teams. "What I told them (Monday) was that the pressure is on Nease. They're the ones expected to win," he said. "They know how many goals these kids have scored. They know their records, but I told them not to be afraid." Nease's Brendan McCurdy has 44 goals, including hat tricks in his past four games. But the Wildcats have faced elite scorers this season and survived. They beat Gulf, which had a 30-goal scorer in Novica Maric, and handled Crystal River's Josh Caldwell (29 goals), holding the Pirates to one goal on a penalty kick. The task of shutting him down starts with defender J.R. Gray, who typically has marked opponents' top scoring threats, and Chad Jones, who has paired with Gray to lead an experienced defense in front of sophomore keeper Joe Berenguer. "I'm lucky that I've got some kids who are good defenders, and for the most part, we've contained the strong offensive players we've gone up against," Dorkowski said. "Those guys, they can stay with anybody." The Wildcats can score, too, led by Gabriel Montelongo and Jose Arroyo, who scored both goals in Thursday's victory. The key tonight likely will be on the defensive end. Wesley Chapel's hopes of continuing its breakout season will ride on the its strength all season. "They've played against kids who can score goals, so it's nothing new," Dorkowski said. "They're excited. They're confident, and whatever happens, the season has been a success."
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