Central Bucks West & Council Rock North advanced to Wednesday’s District One 4A semifinals where the two SOL squads square off against each other. Wissahickon remains alive for a state berth.
#7 CENTRAL BUCKS WEST 0, #2 LOWER MERION 0 (2 OT) (4-3 PKs)
1982.
Ronald Reagan was President of the United States, gas was 91 cents a gallon, the average cost of a new car was $7,983, and the Central Bucks West boys’ soccer team advanced to the state tournament.
The Bucks had not been back since, but the long wait is over. West earned a coveted state tournament berth with a heartstopping win over the second-seeded Aces in penalty kicks. For coach Stefan Szygiel – himself a graduate of West – and the entire program, it was a significant accomplishment.
“Living in the community, being in the community, I think that’s an intangible,” said the Bucks’ coach. “The boys know how much the coaching staff cares about them, they know how much we want them to be successful, and they reciprocate that – they care. I genuinely think they care.
“You talk about high school games and what’s going to give you a competitive advantage, and I just think genuinely caring about it, always wanting to get a little bit better every day – I think that’s what they thrive on. It’s really exciting for these guys. It’s been 35 years since this program has been in states.”
Junior goalkeeper Dylan Smith stood tall in PKs, stonewalling three and – after his third stop – setting the stage for CJ Lang to bang home a PK for the game winner.
“He was excellent,” Szygiel said. “He had an off night Thursday against CB East (a 3-2 win), and the team rallied and made up or it.
“Today we actually missed two penalty kicks, but Dylan guessed right – which is something he’s always been excellent at. He prides himself in that. We took confidence going into penalty kicks. We felt like maybe we could have won 1-0 or 2-0 in regulation, but Lower Merion was good enough we weren’t able to score – I thought their back line was excellent. Their goalkeeper was excellent in the run of play.
“Once we went into penalty kicks I actually thought this could go either way. Our second and third shooters put it off the crossbar, but Dylan was able to keep our confidence high by making saves on their shooters.”
Smith also took the fifth PK and converted it into a goal. Carson Snyder and Colin Burn also connected, and the two teams were deadlocked 3-3 after a round of five. Smith, who had seven saves in a stellar outing, saved the sixth PK attempt, and Lang found the net to bring the game to a dramatic end. The shutout was Smith’s ninth clean sheet.
The Bucks, according to Szygiel, had their chances to get on the board in regulation.
“I thought we came out with great energy,” the Bucks’ coach said. “In the first half, we generated a lot of quality chances. The boys were clearly up for it.
“In the second half, I thought Lower Merion was better than we were. They had more possession. They slowed the game down at times, and they played some good balls into the box and had some chances.
“The overtimes weren’t uneventful. The game was open at times, but Lower Merion just defends so well. I have a lot of respect for their program. I have a lot of respect for (coach) Nico (Severini). They just defended so well. I think we have the athletes and the players to challenge them. They were just able to keep us out.”
With neither team able to score in 110 minutes, the stage was set for penalty kicks.
“I think it was one of our best games of the season, and I think both teams battled the entire time,” Szygiel said. “You’re in playoffs so you have 15-minute overtimes, that’s an extra 30 minutes if you go two OTs.
“It’s like war of attrition at this point. If you go to PKs, these boys have tired legs by this point. You’ve got to just hope it goes your way.”
According to the Bucks’ coach, Saturday’s win was a complete team effort.
“Honestly, every player who is part of the program has to be given credit,” Szygiel said. “Even if you’re talking about seniors who have been here for four years and have sporadic playing time, it doesn’t matter.
“We carry a lot of guys, and it’s not always the easiest thing, but the fact that they all care about a common goal – I think that matters. I give them a lot of credit for that, and I’m so happy for them.”
Central Bucks West (16-4, 9-3 SOL) will host Council Rock North in Wednesday’s District One 4A semifinal at 7 p.m.
Central Bucks West 0-0-0-0 0
Lower Merion 0-0-0-0 0
#19 COUNCIL ROCK NORTH 1, #11 WISSAHICKON 0, OT
Joe Stackhouse called it the story of two halves, and there’s no mistaking the wind dictated the flow of Saturday’s game played in blustery conditions at Wissahickon.
“They dominated the first half in terms of possession, and we probably dominated the second half in terms of possession,” the Indians’ coach said.
Possession doesn’t win games, finishing does, and at the 13:22 mark of the first overtime, it was Sean Finneyfrock eluding a diving keeper and tapping the ball into the net with the game winner.
“Each team’s defense was working really hard to try to shut the other team out, and I just got lucky enough – I got a great ball served in to me by Ryan Pave, and I saw a gap and I decided to go for it, and it ended up working out,” said Finneyfrock. “I was focusing on just making sure I didn’t miss it.
“I wanted to get it on frame because the goalie slid, and I knew he wasn’t going to be back so I just needed to get it on target and hope that no one was there.”
Saturday’s game winner was the second in three district games for Finneyfrock, who also scored the only goal in the Indians’ opening round 1-0 win over Upper Dublin.
“He’s our money man now – he beat three people in the dead center of the field,” Stackhouse said of his junior forward.
The win vaulted the Indians into Wednesday’s District One 4A semifinal at Central Bucks West and also assured the SOL National Conference champions a spot in the state tournament. It’s another milestone for an Indian squad that was on the outside looking in on the district power rankings with a week remaining in the regular season.
“Making it deep in (districts) was always our goal since day one at the start of the season,” sophomore Jeremy Smithline said. “There were points at the end of the regular season where there were scares of us not making it to districts, but we always had faith we would make it. States has always been our goal.”
Saturday’s win was the third shutout in as many postseason games for the Indians. Senior goalkeeper Eddie Mancincelli – who delivered a leaping save of Michael Steitz’s free kick in the first half – was especially active in a first half that saw the Trojans draw four corners kicks. The Indians’ back line – Akash Shah, TJ Grube, Zach Saifer and Smithline – also was flawless.
“Our back four all year has played exceptionally well,” Stackhouse said. “Eddie (Mancinelli) has also played well, and he made a great save in the first half.”
The Indians were coming off an upset of third-seeded North Penn. A letdown was never a concern.
“I don’t think it’s ever tough to get up for a district quarterfinal,” Smithline said. “We were pumped up for the game.”
Playing with the wind in the first half, the Trojans had the better of play, but the Indians’ tenacious defense held. In the second half, the Indians regained some momentum, but the Trojans’ defense was equally stout, and the stage was set for overtime.
Council Rock North (14-6-1, 10-1-1 SOL) will be on the road at Central Bucks West for a District One 4A semifinal on Wednesday at 7 p.m. Wissahickon (14-5-2, 10-2-2) will travel to Lower Merion for a playback game, one of four teams vying for the final state berth.
Council Rock North 0-0-1 1
Wissahickon 0-0-0 0
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