The fans in the stands at Nansemond River High School’s Arrowhead Stadium on Friday witnessed school history being made in boys’ soccer as the Warriors defeated Grassfield High School for the first time.

“They made me proud tonight,” NR coach Dustin Tordoff said. “They made everybody proud.”

The score was tied 1-1 at halftime, and early on in the second half, the Warriors got a direct free kick about 22 yards away from Grassfield’s goal on the left side of the field.

The area in front of the goal was packed with players from both teams as Nansemond River sophomore Maycol Reyes took the kick. The ball arched over the players and curled directly into the goal.

“That was about as good as you can hit that kick,” Tordoff said. “He didn’t miss his mark by anything. I think he hit it exactly how he wanted to hit it. I think that’s about where you just kind of go, ‘Wow.’”

After that, sophomore goalkeeper David Wright and the Warriors defense withstood a flurry of attacks from the Grizzlies to help achieve a 2-1 victory.

“It’s probably one of the top wins in the program,” Tordoff said.

Nansemond River pulled off a big win last season against Midlothian High School in the regional quarterfinals, but Friday’s victory came against a more familiar opponent that has embarrassed the Warriors in times past.

A big turnaround was evident last year when Nansemond River held the Grizzlies scoreless for a 0-0 tie.

“We were able to do a little more this year and come away with the win,” Tordoff said. “So, it’s been building.”

The Warriors were the first to score on Friday. NR senior Maliq Webster made a strong midfield tackle and pushed the ball to senior Yousef Al-Sarraf, who played a nice through ball to senior Brayan Morales, who moments later pushed the ball past the keeper for the goal.

Grassfield evened the score late in the first half.

“They were fast, they were strong, they were skilled,” Tordoff said of the Grizzlies.

He did not want to risk any temporary let up on defense by inserting substitutes who would naturally need some time to acclimate to game speed, so he kept his starters in for the duration of the game.

The defenders included senior Brandon Dowden, sophomore Justin Littlejohn, senior Daniel Brickhouse and sophomore Christian Melton.

“David Wright played an amazing game in the net,” Tordoff said. “He came up with some big saves.”

Praising Al-Sarraf for playing a huge part in the win, the coach said, “He helps keep a lot of pressure off of the defense.”

Tordoff also highlighted junior Sterling McGee when he said, “This was probably one of his better games, and it was the one he didn’t score in. The goals aren’t the only thing that matter.”

The coach ultimately described the game as a 22-man win, noting that even the team members who did not play have been properly pushing the starters in practice.

“I’m just fortunate to have these kids that want to go out there and succeed and just do everything they can for each other,” Tordoff said.

Nansemond River (6-2) visits Lakeland High School on Tuesday and has already secured a landmark record in the Southeastern District.