Wando senior forward Nick Filosa suffered a ruptured Achilles tendon about a month a go, forcing the Warriors to move senior Brian Anderson from goalie to forward, filling Filosa's spot.
That move paid huge dividends as Filosa and Anderson teamed up to lead Wando over Beaufort, 2-0, in the third round of the Class AAAA boys' soccer playoffs Saturday night at Wando Stadium.
Filosa, who returned from the injury Thursday as a reserve, scored what proved to be the decisive goal on an assist from Anderson in the 36th minute. Filosa entered the game about two minutes before he netted the shot.
"I feel good about it, but I am lucky to play with all these guys," said Anderson, who has scored 14 goals this season. "I've played with some of these guys my whole life and I couldn't have done it without them."
In the second half Anderson scored the
final goal in the 52nd minute to seal the win. Anderson received a long pass from Will Moore while racing up the field and drilled the goal, beating two Beaufort defenders.
"We are just lucky to have a guy like Michael Flato, who could step and play goalie for us," Wando coach Shilo Tisdale said. "Brian and Nick are good players and played great for us, but this was a total team effort.
"We did a great job of controlling the ball and keeping Beaufort from scoring. We have an incredible group of guys that have worked hard to get to this point and I am proud of them."
Wando (23-4) moves on to play at Spring Valley for the Lower State championship Wednesday, while Beaufort (16-5) ended its season. Spring Valley defeated Summerville 1-0 Saturday.
Sophomore Ralph Lundy set up Wando's first goal by shooting a hard shot that Beaufort goalie Mike Mozzo deflected out of bounds. Anderson put the ball back in play crossing it to Filosa for the score.
Flato earned the shutout for the Warriors with the help of his defense, which limited the Eagles from getting off many good looks.
Despite the loss, Mozzo made some incredible saves to keep the Eagles in the game. In the first half he made three spectacular stops to keep the Warriors off the board. He stopped Anderson twice and Lundy once in the first half.
WANDO 2, BEAUFORT 0
Goals: W-Anderson, Filosa.
Shutout: Flato.
Records: Wando 23-4.
Next: Wando at Spring Valley on Wednesday.
