THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, May 25, 1995 TAG: 9505230127
SECTION: NORFOLK COMPASS PAGE: 19 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY PATTI WALSH, COMPASS SPORTS EDITOR
LENGTH: Medium: 75 lines
FEW PLAYERS HAVE scored 50 or more career goals in the history of Eastern District boys soccer. But a double hat trick and a lot of hard work has Maury's Josh Bradley among the elite.
What's even more remarkable is that Bradley, a senior, has only been playing offense for two of his four years.
``Last year I was playing fullback,'' said Bradley, who has scored 23 goals this season. ``We were having problems scoring goals, so I started playing offense halfway through the season.''
Added Maury coach Mohsin Bouzaine, ``I put him at fullback because he was big and fast. But we were playing Bayside, and I was moving people around. I said, `Josh, go ahead and play up there.' Right when he got up there, he scored a goal. That was the only goal of the game. Ever since then, he's been scoring a lot of goals.''
While it seemed that Maury's newest forward was a stranger to the front line, he says he was right at home.
In fact, when he wasn't playing defense for the Commodores, he was playing offense in the Norfolk youth leagues.
``I've actually been playing forward all my life,'' said Bradley, whose parents signed him up to play soccer for Christ the King when he was in the second grade.
But this season, Bradley is a seasoned veteran in the Commodores' attack. He has been the general who has led his squadron to a second-place finish and a district tournament championship.
``The reason I could score was because everybody wants to get me the ball,'' he said. ``People want to see me get the goals even if they don't get to score that game.''
Bouzaine says that Bradley's teammates think of him as their go-to guy.
``Everybody has so much confidence in him,'' he said. ``Everybody looks to him. He's the kind of player who wants the ball with two seconds left. He's fast, he's aggressive and he's acrobatic. He's very disciplined, has a great attitude and he's not a quitter.''
``We have a lot of support on the team,'' Bradley added. ``You don't find a lot of teams that like to work together like that. I've really enjoyed it.''
When he's not playing soccer, Bradley has also taken the time to enjoy playing football and wrestling for the Commodores.
He says he ``won as many as (he) lost'' wrestling, but ``it was fun and (he) enjoyed it and that's the main reason to play a sport.''
But still, soccer remains his favorite pastime.
``Anything I've been interested in,'' he said, ``my parents have always made sure I pursued it. You don't have to be all one-sided.''
Those are the words Bradley has lived by.
Not only does he excel on the playing field, but he is among the Commodores' top scorers in the classroom.
Bradley, who carries a full AP course load including Calculus, European History and English, has a 4.2 grade point average. Being so well rounded has paid off for Bradley who will play soccer for West Point in the fall.
``At a young age, my parents taught me that school was the most important thing,'' he said. ``Homework came first, then sports. It takes a lot of hard work. But it's never been a problem balancing them.''
Said Bouzaine, ``He's an incredible student. He has everything. He's been nothing but a success story for Maury.''
Bradley, who has to leave for West Point nine days after his high school graduation, is looking forward to all the hard work he'll face at college.
``I've always wanted to be in the military,'' said Bradley, who will graduate from West Point as a second lieutenant. ILLUSTRATION: Staff photo by CHRISTOPHER REDDICK
Maury's Josh Bradley pulled off a double hat trick against Booker
T.
by CNB