As yet another show of the Butler County area’s strength in the sport, five prep soccer players were recently named to the Pennsylvania Soccer Coaches Association All-State teams. Two performers — Mars’ Piper Coffield and Seneca Valley’s Beaux Lizewski — were also tabbed as the Butler Eagle Soccer Players of the Year.

The others to make the PSCA All-State teams were Mars defender Gwen Howell, Seneca Valley midfielder Connor Oros, and Slippery Rock forward Nick Kingerski — all seniors.

Taking on a new role

Fielding two all-state performers spoke to the strength of Seneca Valley coach George Williams’ crew. Oros’ team-first mentality said a lot about his desire to win.

“Connor is another really strong player,” Williams said. “Physically, he’s strong and his play is outstanding. He’s a very gifted soccer player … He has great speed, great technical ability.”

The Raiders expected Oros to be an offensive threat going into the season. The team found itself in need of someone steady on the back end.

“He stepped up in a way and also stepped back in a way to do that,” Williams said. “On a team of very strong attackers, we needed someone to be a little more defensive so that we didn’t leave ourselves vulnerable in the midfield.

“He really stepped into that role very well, very unselfishly, and — throughout the season — just got better and better at that.”

“We kind of just tried to work through it, but we realized someone was going to have to sit back as a primary holding mid,” Oros said. “I kind of got weeded out because I think I’m stronger in the air and they might provide a little bit more on offense … It worked out perfectly.”

Oros, who was a captain alongside Lizewski and Max Marcotte, was wont to make stops and then commence the attack. Oros netted 10 goals and eight assists

“Even at that defensive center mid, he still liked to go up and score some goals,” Williams said. “He had what we call the backbreaking goal, that one three seconds before halftime (in the state final). He gets a cross from Beaux, he goes up and challenges the goalkeeper and a defender, and he gets it and it bounces right into the goal … That really made a big difference, a big impact on the game.”

Finding the back of the net on such a grand stage isn’t a feat that Oros will soon forget.

“I don’t really pride myself on goals but — looking back on it now — scoring in my last high school game and being maybe the dagger that kind of killed their hopes before halftime, I think it was a meaningful goal, both for the team and for myself,” he said.

Guiding light

With his second all-state honor in as many seasons, Kingerski was the example his Rockets teammates looked up to.

“I’ve seen him grow in the last four years,” Slippery Rock coach Kyle Hopkins said. “Not just as a player, but as a leader … He would step out, whether it was practice, whether it was a game.”

Through the numbers he put up — 22 goals and 12 assists, to be exact — or simply by the effort he put in, Hopkins said Kingerski pushed his teammates.

“Even the guys at our banquet the other night, they talked about how they would see him doing something and they would want to emulate what he was doing. If he was working hard, they wanted to work hard … He took that next step this year.”

He was voted as team MVP and was a big part of why his crew reached the District 10 semifinals, all while collecting a first-team all-region nod for place-kicking with the football team, as well. The schedules didn’t interfere with one another, for game days at least.

“I feel like, a lot of the times, soccer — just in general — and Western PA being huge on football, the kids don’t get the recognition that, as a coach, I would hope they would get,” Hopkins said. “Coming from a small school and showcasing his talents and being awarded with all-state is pretty cool.”

He improved on his totals from 2021 — 21 goals and six assists — and impressed enough to add to his laurels once again.

“After receiving it last year, I was motivated to get it again,” Kingerski said. “I put in the work to make sure it happened.”

He also plays baseball, but is talking to Slippery Rock University about a chance to play on the pitch at the next level. He thanked his teammates for the help they provided.

“We worked well as a team this year and a lot of opportunities arose to get goals and assists,” Kingerski said. “Really, I had great teammates to help me out.”

Ice in her veins

This isn’t happening, Howell thought.

Her team was pushed to the brink in a pair of successive WPIAL playoff games. Both times, she netted the game-winner.

“I don’t even have words for that,” Howell said. “Overtime is just so stressful, because I wanted to win so bad … I literally think I started crying after I scored the one goal, because I was just in such relief and joy. I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, that just happened.’ It was such a good feeling.”

Such a feat isn’t something expected of a defender, but Howell had a knack for being in the right place at the right time. She totaled seven goals and four assists on the season.

“She certainly found a way to come through for us in big moments, even if it was in a part of the field that wasn’t expected,” Mars coach Blair Gerlach said. “She’s one of those players who is very team-oriented … She’s been a really good leader for us.”

Howell started every game of her high school career as a center-back. It doesn’t seem to be much of a coincidence that in the first game she missed — because of a concussion suffered in the WPIAL semifinal — the Planets’ lengthy unbeaten streak was halted.

“She’s just the definition of consistency,” Gerlach said. “She doesn’t get beat 1v1, you can trust that if you send extra defenders forward that she can handle the extra responsibility … She’s just so well-rounded.”

Howell and Coffield are the latest torch-bearers for a successful Mars girls program.

“I think going in when I was a freshman, I was nervous and everything,” Howell said. “All the years that I’ve been playing, it’s just crazy to think about how different each one was, but how special they were at the same time.

“It’s just an amazing honor to be surrounded by such talent and just be named for these awards.”