Shady Spring was one win away from hoisting the Class AA-A Region 3, Section 1 boys sectional soccer championship plaque last year.
Now the Tigers are ready to take the next step.
Heading into the postseason this year, Shady Spring is red-hot winning 10 of it’s last 12 contest and the Tigers are averaging over four goals in those wins.
“I just have a great group of boys and they care about each other,” first year Shady Spring head coach Josiah Smith said. “They are unselfish and a group of guys that really look out for each other. They are willing to do the work in order to grow and they just continue to improve every single game.”
Smith has been the overseer of the steady climb by the Tigers this season, but it was an unlikely position for him to hold back in the winter.
“I love soccer and I have coached a lot of soccer. I didn’t really intend on being the high school coach here at Shady. I did all of the coaching classes over the winter last year, anticipating assisting at the the middle school,” Smith explained. “Turned out that the head coach here at the high school wasn’t able to continue. I had all of the pre-requisites already set up, so I jumped in and accepted the job. I have two nephews and a son on the team, so that made it an even easier decision, but I am so thankful for the opportunity.”
The Tigers started slow with three losses and a tie, but two of the setbacks were to Class AAA teams and the other was to Mercer Christian Academy.
Within class Shady has been dominant, losing just once to perennial state power Charleston Catholic. Against the other Region 3 foes, the Tigers are 8-0-1, outscoring them 34-9.
A big key to the success for the Tigers this season has been their ability to get the ball in the back of the net.
Leading the scoring attack for Shady Spring has been a pair of brothers, junior Michael Vecellio and sophomore Nathan Vecellio.
Michael Vecellio has 28 goals on the season including a six-goal performance against Bluefield and a four goal night last week in a 5-2 win over PikeView. Nathan has also had a strong year scoring 12 goals for the Tigers.
Elijah Smith, the coaches’ son, has netted five goals and Josiah Smith, the coaches’ nephew, leads the team in assists with 11 on the year.
“Michael and Nathan are our leading scorers and they are just dangerous on the ball. A lot of times when you get aggressive players that can score, they can be ball hogs and shoot all the time. Both of them are character guys and they are unselfish,” Smith said. “They look to get the ball off their foot and find their teammates which makes them easy to coach in that regard. Josiah is incredibly creative and he is a player that looks to unlock things and set people up.”
Last year the Tigers were solid defensively and that has carried over to the 2022 campaign. Sophomore David Hegele, senior Caleb “Gator” McDaniel and Jody Thomas have been the anchors on the back line according to Smith.
“They are still strong defensively because the players are all willing to work as a unit. Defense is only as good as the unit. They partner well together and they communicate well. There was already a strong foundation there, but I have seen them continue to work to improve.”
Junior Jacob Shamblin is a force in the middle and gives the Tigers extra strength on both ends of the pitch.
“Jacob plays a little more of a defensive midfield role, but he is able to get forward and support the attack as well,” Smith said. “He is an experienced player that is a fierce competitor and he wants to win control of the ball.”
Shady Spring will open sectional play Tuesday as the No. 2 seed in Section 1 when it hosts James Monroe. However, the Tigers appear to be on a collision course with PikeView who knocked off the Tigers in the sectional final last year.
Smith is taking nothing for granted and has his team focused only on Tuesday’s matchup with the Mavericks.
“I obviously can’t predict the future, but our mentality is definitely taking it one game at a time and focus on the game in front of us,” Smith said. “The section is a lot stronger top to bottom than people might think. James Monroe is very creative, well coached and they move the ball well. They try to slow the game down and play under control.”
