Boys soccer: Kellam wins Beach District title

VIRGINIA BEACH

After 80 exhausting minutes of regulation and nearly nine minutes of overtime, Hector Arellano had just enough left.

Barely.

Arellano tapped in the game-winning goal in the closing minutes of the second extra period to give Kellam a 2-1 victory in a tense, back-and-forth Beach District boys soccer championship game Thursday night at Ocean Lakes High School.

Arellano scored in the final minute of the first half for a 1-0 lead. For his final goal, he skipped around a defender near the left post and scooted the ball past Ocean Lakes keeper Rory Mills. The ball barely reached the netting.

“That was the last energy I had,” said Arellano, a senior who has signed with Loyola. “Good thing it went in because after that I would’ve been done.”

The victory sends the Knights (14-1-2) into Tuesday’s Eastern Region quarterfinals at Powhatan Field in Norfolk. Kellam plays Peninsula District No. 1 Kecoughtan at 2 p.m., while Beach regular-season champion Cox meets Peninsula No. 2 Warwick at 8 p.m.

On Thursday, Kellam avenged its only loss – a 1-0 setback – by outlasting Ocean Lakes (11-5-3) after the teams played a taut regulation in which both had plenty of scoring opportunities.

Kellam squandered several chances before halftime – many of them thanks to Mills and the Ocean Lakes defense. At one point, Mills saved three shots in a flurry at the goal mouth, and defender Tony Garner booted away another attempt.

Ocean Lakes’ Daniel Scholz scored 14 minutes into the second half, drilling a shot over the outstretched arms of keeper Kyle Vanwerkhoven.

In the first overtime, a goal by Ocean Lakes’ Conor Webb was disallowed when he was ruled offsides.

Then, Arellano summoned enough for one final attempt, knocking the ball past Mills.

“It caught me off guard and kind of trickled in,” Mills said. “I did my best to get there, but it just wasn’t good enough.”

Jami Frankenberry, (757) 446-2376, jami.frankenberry@pilotonline.com

Beach District final

Kellam 2, Ocean Lakes 1, OT

G—K, Arellano 2; OL, Scholz.