By Michael Lindsay
The Cumberland County Jets are District 6/AA soccer champions for the third time in four seasons following Thursday’s victory over DeKalb County in the title game, 1-0.
“I’m extremely proud of the boys,” said CCHS head coach Cub Whitson. “We fought really hard and put it together to get a goal and win the game.”
The Jets won district titles in 2019, 2021 and 2023 along with a runner-up finish in 2022. Cumberland County has two region championships in the stretch despite no season in 2020.
“I feel like we are a great program,” Whitson added. “It’s a whole community effort, and I feel like we should be here every year.”
Thursday’s final score resembled their last victory over DeKalb County as a second-half goal was enough for a 1-0 victory.
With 10:40 remaining, Cumberland County’s Dominic Olsen found the back of the net from in front of the goal via a Nikki Azzani assist with 10:40 remaining to lift the Jets to their 1-0 victory.
“It’s a bit of a blur,” Whitson said. “We’d been having trouble playing through the midfield and connecting to our guys up front. Jonathan Tellez intercepted a pass and got the ball forward right on the money. It was so good that Nikki and Dom both had a chance on it. Nikki tapped it over and Dom was able to get it in the back of the net.”
Thursday’s shutout by Cumberland County’s defense and keeper Jamie Perez was the second consecutive against District 6/AA’s best scoring offense.
“We were not playing our best, and DeKalb was really taking it to us,” Whitson said. “Those guys (on defense) probably don’t get enough credit. Everybody likes to find out who scored goals, but these guys put together some really good soccer on the defensive end.”
Both teams advance to next week’s Region 3/AA tournament semifinals. Cumberland County will host Kingston on Tuesday while DeKalb County will travel to Clinton.
“It’s easy to go into that next round on a high note and feel invincible,” Whitson said. “It’s important to get refocused and reset on the next task at hand.”
