Neshaminy fell to Seneca Valley 2-1 in the second overtime of Saturday’s PIAA 4A state title game.
Class 4A
#7-1 SENECA VALLEY 2, #1-1 NESHAMINY 1
HERSHEY – Moments after accepting the PIAA runner-up trophy, Neshaminy coach Tom Foley led his team to the halfway line where they stopped to salute Seneca Valley with a round of applause.
As the Raiders received their state championship trophy, they quickly returned the favor. For 100 minutes and some change, the last two boys’ soccer teams had left it all on the vast HersheyPark Stadium pitch and while the outcome hadn’t gone their way, the Redskins knew it deserved recognition.
A well-finished header by SV captain Zack LaValle at the near post off a cross 36 seconds into the second overtime ended Neshaminy’s dream of a state title after a grueling battle.
“You never want to leave anything out on the field and I thought the kids gave it all they had tonight,” Foley said. “That’s a very, very good team over there. I thought we battled them really hard. We started picking up some momentum in the first overtime, but they got possession, they’re a good technical team, had a good build-up and it’s a heck of a goal.”
Neshaminy got off to a dream start, bagging a goal just seven minutes into the contest. Manny Weagba made a smart, incisive pass to Jose Rivera inside the box with Rivera neatly tucking away the early tally.
Seneca Valley, the District 7 champion out of the WPIAL, had the right mix of size, skill and speed to match up with Neshaminy and put the Redskins under some pressure.
Senior captain Cole Jackson had plenty of respect for the Raiders.
“They’re a great team, all credit to them, they played their hearts out and we played our hearts out, they just came out on top,” Jackson said. “It’s tough when they have a dude who looks like he’s bigger than my dad heading the ball in for the winner, but that’s part of the game. We’ll bounce back and it was a great season.”
Jackson’s ability to add levity to a tough ending was a sign of the team’s close-knit bond this season. With 14 seniors on the roster, reaching Hershey was the end result of several season’s worth of work.
“I’ve seen them grow up, I had a lot of them at Carl Sandburg as middle schoolers and had a chance to see them mature,” Foley said. “They set a goal, they wanted to go far in districts and states by the time they were seniors and hats off to them, they put the hard work in and showed a lot of grit and determination the last three years.”
Late in the first half, Neshaminy took a hit when senior goalkeeper Trevor Rush picked up a hip injury. Initially trying to play through it, Rush had to sub off with 10 seconds left in the half and, despite the best efforts of the training staff, was not able to return.
In his place, junior Logan Gildea stepped in and performed admirably.
“We can play a higher line because Trevor is so technical with his feet. Logan doesn’t play as much with his feet so we didn’t want to put him under the gun,” Foley said. “He did a very good job, he can’t be blamed for either one of those goals.”
If the backs were the heart of Neshaminy’s rugged defense, Rush was the heart with his unique style. Jackson noted it was a change losing the senior captain, but Gildea soon proved he was up for the task.
“We’ve had players go down all season and we just played hard for them,” Jackson said. “It’s a next-man up mentality. Logan lived up to that tonight and we just didn’t get the result.”
Seneca Valley knotted the match up about 10 minutes into the second half. A ball from LaVelle settled for Nathan Eastgate, who hit an absolute rocket that no keeper would have saved to level things off 1-1.
Gildea helped force overtime with a couple nice saves and key plays on balls played into the box while the Raiders managed to keep the Redskins’ attack contained. Neshaminy had its moments, but none of them would pay off.
Senior Gavin Rowan had the best of those, hitting a tantalizing ball off the left wing that forced Seneca Valley keeper Adam Davies to a make a full-extension leaping save on in the first overtime.
“That’s a credit to them,” Foley said. “Sometimes our last pass was a little bit off or that last touch wasn’t there. They’re very good, they’re techincal, they find open spaces and their midfielders find a lot of the ball so they’re tough to play against.”
Foley credited his entire cast, from the seniors who led the way to the underclassmen who bought into what the team wanted to do this season. There was plenty of success to come of it, with a 13-2-2 overall record, an unbeaten SOL Patriot title and the District I title that put the Redskins on the path to Hershey.
“I rate it 10 out of 10, everybody’s putting in the work, everyone is giving their hardest,” Jackson said. “I don’t think there’s a guy on this team who’s toxic or anything like that. Everybody loves everybody, each guy is playing a part and it helps when you have a team like that. You bond together and get where you want to be.”
Seneca Valley 0-1-0-1 2
Neshaminy 1-0-0-0 1
Goals: SV – Nathan Eastgate, Zack LaVelle; N – Jose Rivera
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