Third time's a charm: Appomattox edges Nelson County in Region 2C girls soccer quarterfinal
Morgan Adams (No. 13) of Appomattox pushes the ball downfield during Friday's Region 2C quarterfinal win at Nelson County. (Charles Conrad/Times Virginian)

In two previous girls soccer matchups this season between Dogwood District rivals Appomattox Raiders and Nelson County Governors, the Raiders were unable to overcome the Governors as they were defeated 3-1 on April 23 and played to a 3-3 double overtime tie on May 10. This evening, however, the Raiders got over the hump in the teams' third meeting with a 2-1 win in a Region 2C quarterfinal played at Nelson County High School.

The Raiders struck first early in the first half when Lily Wagurak put in a goal from the left side off an assist from Lindsey Kidd, who had passed the ball from the middle area of the goal box after receiving a downfield through ball from Catey Paulette.

From that point, Nelson's defense was able to keep the Raiders in check the remainder of the first half as the game developed into a defensive battle.

Approximately six minutes into the second half, Laney Harvey evened the score at 1-1 for the Governors as she snuck through a gap in the Raider defensive backline and found the lower right side of the net.

The Raiders quickly turned the tide less than two minutes later on a high-arching, perfectly placed kick by Lindsey Kidd, who fired the ball from near the right sideline and into the upper left corner for a 2-1 lead.

That score would hold for the remainder of the game. The Governors' offense pressured the Raiders multiple times as the clock was winding down. On one last effort, the Governors shot a corner kick that bounced off a Raider in front of the goal. Alexa McNamara cleared the ball for Appomattox as the final whistle blew.

Appomattox goalie Christian Dawson made several key saves down the stretch.

Nelson County, the No. 4 seed in the region, concludes their season with a 12-5-1 record. Fifth seed Appomattox improves to 11-3-2 and will face top-seeded Glenvar on Tuesday, May 28 in a Region 2C semifinal in Martinsville. More details to come.

For additional game coverage, see the upcoming May 29 edition of the Times Virginian.