Central Bucks East earned a berth in states for the eighth time in nine years and will compete in Wednesday’s District One AAA semifinal on Wednesday.
#1 CENTRAL BUCKS EAST 0, #8 NORTH PENN 0 (3-1 PKs)
Austin Prime thrives in pressure situations.
CB East’s goalie – with double-digit shutouts to his credit this season – didn’t see all that much action during regulation and two overtime periods of Saturday night’s district quarterfinal game at War Memorial Field, but when penalty kicks rolled around, he was ready.
“As the extra time started going down, I realized that we were going to get to it,” Prime said. “I tried to mentally prepare the best I could, get confident in my decision making and confident in my team that they were going to bury it, and they came through, buried the ball. All the credit to them.”
After Evan Vare found the net on East’s initial penalty, North Penn senior Matthew Richardson got one by Prime, but that would be the Knights’ last hurrah. The Patriots added goals by Andrew Zach and Brian Gilligan. With his team leading 3-1, Prime deflected the fourth shot he faced over the cage, sealing the Knights’ fate and setting off a jubilant celebration.
“I wasn’t even keeping track of the count, and I didn’t even know (it was over),” said Prime, who was mobbed by his teammates. “As soon as I saw everybody running toward me, it’s the craziest feeling knowing that I could help the team that way.
“All the credit goes to our guys – they fought hard all game, and they deserved it. I was just glad I could do my part.”
Prime, according to coach Mike Gorni, has played an important leadership role on this year’s squad.
“We told people from the very beginning of the year with our captains – Austin is our leader in every way,” the Patriots’ coach said. “Organizationally in the back and defensively, he’s not only a great goalkeeper, he’s a great kid.
“Every single player on the team likes and respects him. It’s a big moment for him. When he went down at West and missed the five games, we definitely missed his leadership. He deserved a moment like this.”
The win ensured the Patriots a spot in the state tournament for the eighth time in nine years.
“It’s hard to sustain, and to do it over and over again is crazy,” coach Mike Gorni said. “With the team and all the pressure they’ve had, it’s been an amazing run.
“We’ve only had our starting lineup this year three times, and I think people lose sight of that too. We’ve been without a lot of bodies, and this was a difficult one. We needed to be a little fortunate tonight, certainly when anything goes to PKs, but 20-0 is still 20-0.”
The meeting was the third of the season between the two SOL Continental powers. The Knights extended the Patriots to overtime in a 2-1 East win in the initial meeting, and the Patriots eked out a 1-0 win in the second.
“It’s really tough,” Prime said of playing the Knights for a third time. “In a sense we know everything about them, and they know everything about us, so we’re real familiar opponents.
“We know we’re never going to get an easy game with them. All the credit to them. Jordan (Katz) did great back there. He deserves all the credit in the world. Their team played hard.”
“There weren’t going to be any surprises tonight,” Gorni added. “These kids know each other inside out.
“It was really just a matter of two competitive teams that had to sort it out. Again, I think it was a really even game. I don’t think we outplayed them, I don’t think they outplayed us, but we had just enough to get through today.”
While East had the better of play in the opening half, the Knights came on strong late in the second half, but the defenses for both sides kept things from getting too dangerous.
Still, players on both sides knew that one breakdown could mean the end of the season.
“That’s kind of the theme we reiterated throughout the game – at halftime and after every overtime period – that this could be our last 15,” Prime said. “When we got to the kicks, we said – this could be the last time we step on the field together so take the opportunities, bury your chances, and I’ll try my best back there.”
It was one of those games that neither team deserved to lose, but penalty kicks ensured there would be a winner.
“No one ever wants to go into PKs, but we just have to stay positive, stay confident, pick a goal and do it,” Gilligan said. “Everyone is starting to see what it’s like to be in playoffs and how intense it can be.”
The Knights (14-5-2, 9-3-2 SOL) did what no team before them had done this season – kept the dangerous Patriots off the scoreboard not only in regulation but two overtime periods.
“I thought in the first half East outplayed us,” coach Paul Duddy said. “It was in that end a lot more, and they beat us a little in the midfield too, but I think we defended well.
“When all was said and done, I think a lot of people did not think that we would be as competitive this year. We lost a lot of seniors from last year, but the guys stepped right up. A couple stepped up from jayvee and gave us way more minutes than I thought they would. Just credit to them – they played tough. It was a tough game.”
Gorni credited the Knights for their performance.
“The odd part about it is this year we’re probably the leading attacking team,” the Patriots’ coach said. “People look at us a little bit defensively, but I don’t think there’s anybody in the area who has more goals than we do, so for North Penn to hold us scoreless is a big deal.”
Central Bucks East (20-0, 14-0 SOL) will face fourth-seeded West Chester Henderson in Wednesday’s district semifinal at Council Rock North (5 p.m.)
North Penn 0-0-0-0 0
Central Bucks East 0-0-0-0 0
#3 SPRINGFIELD-DELCO 2, #6 PENNSBURY 1
Saturday’s quarterfinal game was destined for overtime or at least so it seemed, but with 10 seconds remaining in regulation, Nick Janelli found the net for the game winner, bringing a successful season to a heartbreaking end for the Falcons.
“We played great today,” coach Tom Stoddart said. “We by far had the better of play. We were dominant, but we just couldn’t score.
“I give it up to their keeper (Mike Gerzabek) – he played well.”
The Cougars broke a scoreless tie with a goal in the 63rd minute.
“They had a throw-in completely against the run of play, and they ended up stringing together a couple headers, and somehow the ball found the back of the net,” Stoddart said. “We knew it was against the run of play, and we didn’t fall apart.”
Five minutes later, Zach LoBasso turned a Colin Marks corner kick into the equalizer.
“From there on out, we just really commanded the game even more,” Stoddart said. “The field was definitely tilted our way. We had numerous scoring opportunities to get the go-ahead goal.
“They had one run the other way, and their kid lost their composure and ended up just brutally fouling one of my guys in the back and ended up getting a red card, so now we were up a man with five minute to go.”
The Falcons had opportunities, drawing several corner kicks in the game’s closing minutes.
“Colin Marks had a couple of shots that the keeper made some nice saves on,” Stoddart said. “Then right at the end of the game, we left the ball get out of our own end for probably the first time in the last five minutes.
“They just kept moving forward. The ball slid into the box, and (Janelli) was there. One of our guys slipped and fell – the field was a little slick for both teams, and the kid made no mistake, and he buried it with 10.6 seconds left. Somehow down a man, they got their opportunity to move forward.
“Soccer is probably the most prominent sport where the best team on the day is not always going to win the game, and I definitely think that was the case today, but hats off to Springfield because they really have a lot of guts and got some mojo going their way with their last two wins.”
Stoddart bids farewell to 15 seniors who were the nucleus of this year’s successful squad.
“All 15 contributed, and it will be hard to see them go, but the way we run our program – we have a lot of depth,” the Falcons’ coach said. “We tend to recycle and reload pretty fast.
“It’s a tribute to the character of the seniors and the way they treat the underclassmen and really bring them along.”
The Falcons closed out the season with a 16-5 record (10-4 SOL).
We had a great season. We had five losses, but we rarely trailed. We’ve never reached halftime behind, and I think in that grand total, we’ve trailed for less than 65 minutes the entire season. There’s no doubt the talent was there, and I thought we showed great character to get through the week and put ourselves in a position to win, but it just didn’t happen today.”
Pennsbury 0-1 1
Springfield 0-2 2
#2 CONESTOGA 4, #7 ABINGTON 0
A special season came to an end for the Ghosts, who captured the SOL National Conference title. The Pioneers scored a pair of goals in the opening half – the first with 25 minutes remaining when Pedro Acosta turned a Chris Donovan pass into a goal. With 8:34 remaining in the half, Donovan made it a 2-0 game with an unassisted goal.
Danny Leiser (Logan Schwartz assist) put the Pioneers on top just over nine minutes into the second half, and three minutes later, Donovan connected for his second goal of the game, using a Blaise Minaek assist.
Abington closed out the season with a 16-5 record overall (10-4 SOL).
Abington 0-0 0
Conestoga 2-2 4
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