The groundwork for Thomas Dale’s 28-14 road victory over L.C. Bird yesterday in the Central Region, Division 6 semifinal was laid not just in practice, not in hours and hours of film study, and not in some late-night meeting where Vic Williams and his coaching staff conceived the game plan. It was laid one bleak Friday two months ago when the Knights, up 14-0 at halftime, suffered a 21-14 defeat at the hands of the Skyhawks, their neighborhood rival, and made a commitment never to feel the pain again.

When: Today, 1 p.m. Tickets: $8
  Records: Thomas Dale Knights 8-2; L.C. Bird Skyhawks 10-0. L.C. Bird was ranked No.1 in the final Times-Dispatch Top 10 and No.5 in The Associated Press state poll. Fourth-ranked by the T-D, Thomas Dale was unranked by AP.
  Last meeting: L.C. Bird rallied from a two-touchdown halftime deficit to beat Thomas Dale 21-14 on Sept. 25. The Battle of Chester series is even at 17-17-1. This is their sixth meeting in the playoffs. The last was 2002, which also is the last time the Knights were in the playoffs. Thomas Dale has a 4-1 edge in postseason.

After a scoreless first half, Thomas Dale outscored Matoaca three touchdowns to two in the second to win the Central District championship and advance to the Central Region Division 6 playoffs for the first time since 2002. Matoaca recovered two Thomas Dale fumbles in the first quarter, and the Knights covered a Warriors fumble as the defenses ruled.

History isn’t on the side of the Central Region’s representatives in the Virginia High School League Group AAA field hockey tournament. It’s been years since the region has had a team advance beyond the quarterfinals.

Clover Hill rallied in the third and fourth games to eliminate defending Central Region champion Thomas Dale in four games. Neither team had more than a threeor four-point run during a tight match. Each game was decided by four or two points. The Cavaliers, who lost to the Knights earlier this season, got 38 assists from Andy Hite, 15 kills from Tony Song and 10 kills from Mark Smith.

Trailing top-ranked Meadowbrook by 13 points with 10:14 left in last night’s clash of Central District unbeatens, Thomas Dale’s players could’ve hung their heads and watched another season draw to a close without a Central Region playoff berth. Instead, the sixth-ranked Knights put together a remarkable rally that leaves them on the verge of a district championship.

Last night’s Central Region field hockey championship may not have been an elimination game, but there was much more riding on the outcome for Thomas Dale and Cosby than merely an opportunity to add another piece of shiny hardware to their schools’ trophy cases. The Knights were trying to win their fourth consecutive region title. The Titans sought the first region crown in their program’s four-year history. And for both teams, the chance to host a Group AAA state tournament quarterfinal game Tuesday gave last night’s matchup at Clover Hill High School even greater significance.

You’ve heard this before. “We know every year we have to win the district in order to go to the playoffs in Division 6, so every district game becomes critical,“ said Hermitage coach Patrick Kane. Thomas Dale coach Vic Williams said after the Knights defeated district foe Dinwiddie: “We’re in a playoff game every week.“ L.C. Bird coach David Bedwell refers to the games preceding the start of district play as “preseason.“

The top-seeded Knights claimed the title by defeating No. 2 Matoaca on the Chiefs home court. Matoaca’s Ryan Clapman had nine kills. For the Knights, Zach Seymour led with 14 kills, 11 assists and 11 blocks; Matt Knickerbocker had13 blocks and 3 kills and Jake McCall added 6 kills. Matoaca————————————- 20 17 19
Thomas Dale————————————- 25 25 25