Raiders produce clutch 4-3 victory
JACKSON TWP — With section supremacy on the line, Senior Night for the Seneca Valley girls soccer team turned out to be a special one.
Myra Charles, one of six seniors on the team, set the tone for a four-goal barrage in the first half and the Raiders held on for a 4-3 victory over North Allegheny in a WPIAL Section 2-AAA clash on Monday night at NexTier Stadium.
The Tigers (13-1-1, 9-1-1) entered the evening undefeated and had not given up more than two goals in a game all season long. The win puts Seneca Valley (14-2, 9-1) in the driver's set for a section championship.
The seven combined goals — including six in the first half — was an unexpected result for both coaches, especially after NA edged the Raiders 1-0 on Sept. 21.
“It's not exactly what you want out of your team. We usually defend a little better than that,” said SV coach Dave Sylvester. “Both teams knew what was on the line, so I guess both teams played a little frantic because I know NA is a little better defensively than to give up that many goals.”
Charles started it off by bolting past the NA defense and depositing a shot into the top-right corner of the net just four minutes and eight seconds into the game.
“The first goal is always big,” said Sylvester. “It kind of sets the other team back on their heels and gives you a little bit of a jump.”
North Allegheny had a couple of chances to strike back, but Seneca Valley goalkeeper Jess Neill was there to rob Amanda Miller of two chances and preserve the edge.
Seneca Valley responded with a flurry of high-percentage opportunities — all in a span of two minutes and 15 seconds — but NA goalie Madison Martin was up to the task twice before SV misfired on an open net.
Miller broke through for NA after being awarded a penalty kick with 14:53 remaining in the first half.
It didn't remain tied for long, though.
A direct kick from Alicia Hart bounced around in front of the net before Carly Miller put it in for a 2-1 Seneca Valley lead with 12:33 to play in the first half.
At the 8:27 mark, Hart lined up for another direct kick — this time from 31 yards away — and drilled a laser off Martin's glove and into the net for a 3-1 advantage.
North Allegheny answered just one minute and 24 seconds later when Miller looped a header over Neill, cutting the deficit to 3-2.
It only took the Raiders one minute to respond, as Emily Wagner took a corner kick from Hart and booted it in for a 4-2 cushion with six minutes remaining in the half.
“It was crazy,” said NA coach Danielle Borkowski. “It was like a hockey game for a while there.
“I think we kind of regrouped in the second half, but we just didn't play well tonight,” she added. “There was no communication with our defense in the first half. It was really bad.”
North Allegheny immediately applied pressure following halftime with a goal from Megan Van Kirk just one minute and 39 seconds in.“I told the girls at halftime that a two-goal lead is very dangerous because the other team gets a goal and then the momentum swings and that's kind of what happened,” said Sylvester.“That was huge for us,” said Borkowski. “We really thought we'd come back. We had several opportunities that we thought our forwards were going to capitalize on, but we didn't.”The Tigers' last gasp came on a direct kick from Hannah Stoof with 27 seconds left. Neill made a sliding save on a sinking line drive to secure the victory.“She's pretty awesome to have back there,” said Sylvester of Neill. “She's our rock.”Neill and Martin tallied nine saves apiece, while SV held a 6-4 advantage in corner kicks.The triumph marked the final regular-season home game for Seneca Valley seniors Charles, Kayli Kumanchik, Kelley Norton, Lexi Pucci, Rosa Salgado and MaryKate Zahorchak.The Senior Night triumph also paves the way for the group to leave the program as section champions.“It's huge, real huge,” said Sylvester. “Now all we have to do is close it out. We have two tough road games left with Butler and Pine-Richland. If we take care of our business, we'll be all right.”
