CB East defeated Hershey 2-0 in Tuesday’s opening round of the PIAA Class AAA Tournament. To view photos of the game, please visit the Photo Gallery.
#1-1 CENTRAL BUCKS EAST 2, #3-4 HERSHEY 0
The Patriots overcame the elements and the potential of a letdown after Saturday’s riveting district title game again to win an opening round PIAA Class AAA game.
“Miserable night – we could blame a whole bunch of stuff, but we were flat,” the Patriots’ coach said. “This is always a trap game after the district final.
“It’s coming back after winning the district and exuding all that energy, and coming off that is always a tough game. Fortunately, we were the better team tonight, and even though we were flat and didn’t play as well as we’ve been playing, we played good enough to win.”
Edgar Mauge turned a Joey Bowen pass into a goal midway through the first half, and that sent the Patriots into halftime with a 1-0 lead. In the 53rd minute, Brian Gilligan tacked on an insurance goal, using a Justin Chomik assist.
“It was a great run down the flank, kept the ball in on the left side,” Gorni said. “Justin Chomik crossed the ball in from the left side, and Brian Gilligan finished it from inside the six.”
That 2-0 lead stood the rest of the way as the Patriots recorded their 15th shutout of the season.
“We had another really strong game from our two middle defenders – a really good game from Will Eisold and another really good game from Stephen Sheehan,” Gorni said.
The Patriots’ coach also acknowledged the strong play in the midfield of J.R. Eisold, Brian Gilligan, Edgar Mauge and Andrew Walters.”
Central Bucks East (23-0, 14-0 SOL) will face District Three’s third-seeded team, Cumberland Valley, in Saturday’s second round. Cumberland Valley defeated District 2 champion Wyoming Valley West 6-0.
Hershey 0-0 0
Central Bucks East 1-1 2
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