Another Demus PK goal sparks Pioneer boys past Wood

WINCHESTER — Millbrook boys' soccer coach Rhonda Cottino figured she used seven people at the forward positions on Tuesday night, and she said, "I think each one of them brought the energy on the field."

One of them was a player who has typically played in the midfield for the Pioneers this year, and he once again delivered a penalty kick goal that propelled Millbrook to a Class 4 Northwestern win over James Wood.

Junior Will Demus scored on a penalty kick in the 46th minute to give the Pioneers a 2-1 lead en route to a 3-1 win at Millbrook, 26 days after he scored on a penalty kick in overtime to give the Pioneers a 2-1 win over the Colonels at James Wood.

Millbrook (5-2-2, 4-1-1 district) had gone 0-2-2 since its previous win against the Colonels (5-3-1, 4-2), who had gone 4-0 since losing that contest.

Demus (five goals) and Garrett Johnson (six) — the only two Pioneers with more than one goal this season — each sat the first 15 minutes of Tuesday's game, with the Pioneers holding a 5-2 shot advantage in that time and leading 1-0 on the scoreboard thanks to the first career goal from freshman forward Ian Melnikoff.

"I thought we played really well," said Demus of the opening 15 minutes. "Our starting lineup setting the pace like that, it allowed me and Garrett whenever we came in to just pick right where they left off with even more pressure."

Demus had some great looks at the goal over the remainder of the first half, including one header that was denied by James Wood goalkeeper Zach Myers (seven of his 10 saves in the first half) and a lined shot that sailed just high with only Myers in front of him. Demus didn't dwell on those potential goal opportunities, though.

"I wasn't worried," Demus said. "I knew what was coming."

Another one of those high-energy forwards on Tuesday was Melnikoff. He played a long ball from the left sideline into space on the right toward Demus, setting up a one-on-one situation. After tracking the ball down, Demus maneuvered his way through the right edge of the penalty box and was heading toward goal when he was taken down.

"I didn't even think I was going to get to the ball, because [the defender] was there, but he just stopped running," Demus said. "When I saw that he stopped, I just kind of picked it up even more. Then he just kind of swept my leg out from under me."

Demus then proceeded to fire a left-footed shot into the right side of the goal. James Wood had taken the only three shots of the second half before Demus scored, but they would only manage one more shot to Millbrook's six from that point forward. The Pioneers finished with a 22-12 shot edge.

"I knew once we got up again, we had them," Demus said.

"Second half, we kept the ball in their half the majority at the start, but we give up another PK that puts them back in the game," said Colonels coach Ronald Velasquez, referencing the first game with Millbrook. "After that, I think we kind of just put our heads down and fell."

Cottino said Demus had been bothered by an injury recently, and she thought moving him up top could spark him. Cottino said she was impressed by the pressure applied and opportunities created at center forward by David Benavides, and liked the through pass from Hamilton Lopez to Johnson in the 54th minute while both were playing high in the formation to complete the scoring.

Melnikoff is the only freshman on the Pioneers, and he continued his recent strong play in his third start. Melnikoff had his first assist of the season last week against Harrisonburg. His goal came off a corner kick to the near post from Benavides. Melnikoff said Christian Nixon got a touch on the ball first, then it went to him, and he buried it from about 10 yards out. Melnikoff nearly had a couple of more goals.

"We started off the game excited," Melnikoff said. "We just went out there and applied as much pressure as we could."

Cottino said the all-around play of Melnikoff, one of the biggest players on the field, is making a difference.

"A couple of weeks ago, he was asking what he could do to get more playing time," Cottino said. "We had a talk with him, and he's listened and taken every word of that to heart. He's changed his game the last couple of weeks, and we're proud of him for that.

"His work off the ball [is better]. He's a very technical club player, but high school is a little bit different. There's maybe a little more work off the ball, a little more defensive work for him. I told him what I was looking for, and he did it. He's earned his minutes."

Cottino was pleased with how the Pioneers worked the ball through the midfield, and the defensive back line of Kyle Arthur in the middle and Brayan Lopez-Romero and Chase Hepner on the outsides bottled up James Wood in the second half.

Cottino in particular wanted to see the Pioneers play stronger defense on Colonels freshman Daylin Paige, who had a beautiful goal in the 18th minute when he floated a long, high ball to the far left corner over Brandt Upson (three saves) following a pass from Brayden Pineda.

"[Paige] is dangerous," Cottino said. "He finished on us when he let him have the ball at his feet for five seconds to turn. You can't allow a player like that time and space. I thought [our defense] did a really good job of denying the first opportunity."

The Colonels have already won more games than last year, and they control their own destiny for one of the four playoff spots available in Region 4D North. They'll look to bounce back from a tough loss when they travel to Skyline (2-8) on Friday.

"We knew [tonight] was going to be a challenging game for us," Velasquez said. "[Millbrook] stepped up and played a good game."

The Pioneers will travel to Warren County on Thursday.

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