Wootton boys soccer has won two straight after a five-game losing streak. The Patriots sit at 4-5 overall and 1-0 in Montgomery County 4A West Region 1 play, according to MaxPreps.
After opening the season with three consecutive wins, including a 4-1 victory over Damascus on Sept. 4, the team dropped five in a row. Three of those losses went to overtime.
The skid began with a 3-0 loss to Century on Sept. 8. Bethesda-Chevy Chase beat the Patriots 3-2 in overtime on Sept. 14, and Whitman edged them 1-0 in overtime two days later. Walter Johnson won 3-2 in double overtime on Sept. 22, and rival Churchill handed Wootton a 2-1 loss on Sept. 25.
The Patriots snapped the streak with a 2-1 overtime win over Quince Orchard on Monday, Sept. 28, then beat Magruder 4-1 on Monday, Oct. 5.
"Even when we were losing games, we knew we were capable of playing with these teams. We just had to stay focused and trust each other," junior defender Alejandro Monarez told the Common Sense, Wootton's student newspaper.
Senior captain and defender Ralph Alexander-Aze has helped draw bigger crowds this fall. Senior Jonathan Aquilante credited Alexander-Aze, Casen Linn and Enem Archibald with increasing fan attendance through their play.
First-year head coach Liam Giffin took over a program that went 5-9 last season and lost six seniors, including MoCo All-Star Game nominees Aadi Chaudhari and Shreyas Ganeshan. Giffin played collegiately at McDaniel College and Duquesne University before coaching youth teams.
Four of the five losses during the skid were decided by a single goal or in overtime, with only the Century defeat a lopsided result. That margin suggested the Patriots were competitive even when results didn't come.
Wootton travels to Northwood on Tuesday, Oct. 13, at 5:15 p.m., then hosts Richard Montgomery in a region game on Wednesday, Oct. 21.
