NETHER PROVIDENCE — For more than 70 minutes Tuesday, Radnor’s boys soccer team pressed Strath Haven just about every moment that they had possession of the ball in their own half. For all that effort, they produced chances aplenty but none that broke through Haven’s stubborn defense.
All it takes, the message from Radnor’s bench remained, was one – one instance in which the Raptors combined the right turnover with the right move in the final third.
It took 75 minutes, but the payoff was worth the effort.
A turnover caused near the sideline in the 75th minute sparked the decisive sequence, leading to Commerce Fisk’s goal and a 1-0 win over the Panthers.
“The virtue of our team is hard work,” Fisk said. “That goal is the epitome of it. It’s going at it, going at every single ball and finding every way possible to have it go in the net. You can feel it on the sidelines, it’s just fantastic.”
The goal started like many an empty attacking Radnor move did on the afternoon: With pressure, midfielder Matt Santerian and forward Roman Rivera converging on a Haven defender near the touchline. Santerian was the one to dribble toward the box, cutting back a cross pass that found its way to Fisk, who led to fellow forward Andrew Marino. His shot was pawed away by Haven goalie Will Hall with a big left hand. But Fisk was quickest to the rebound, burying it to put Radnor (5-1, 2-0 Central) up.
“The goalie gets it with his hand, and I come in and just try to poke at it with my right foot,” Fisk said. “And I was lucky enough to finish it.”
Radnor had created the better chances all afternoon. In the first half, it controlled field position with seven corner kicks to Haven’s none. The Panthers (3-4, 1-2) responded after halftime to even the pace of play but they didn’t create a ton of danger.
The Raptors were unlucky not to be ahead sooner. Part of that was due to Hall, who made five saves. He punched away a Michael Savadove header inches from the bar off a corner late in the first half, and he corralled a rising shot by Jack Ennis in the 70th minute when Ennis broke free on a counter.
“I’ve played with him my whole life, and he’s one of the best keepers I’ve ever played with,” Haven forward Noah Plunkett said of Hall. “He’s incredible in club when I played with him. Today, he was great. It was unlucky that they scored off the rebound.”
The Raptors spurned a couple of counterattacks created from pressure, with Ennis putting a shot wide a minute into the second half with the outside of his right boot to Marino and Fisk launching a 2-on-1 past a beaten defense in the 64th in which Marino unselfishly squared to Fisk instead of taking it himself.
One goal has proven to be enough for Radnor this year. All five wins have been shutouts, the lone loss a 3-1 decision to Downingtown East. The Raptors have three seniors in Savadove, Jake Bowman and Aidan Damiani anchoring a three-man backline that controls space beautifully. With Savadove’s aerial command, Bowman’s speed and the telescopic range of Damiani to clog passing lanes, it’s a potent combination. Nate Lucchesi provides a strong shield in midfield, and both Lucchesi and Damiani created chances with their service out of the back.
“We’ve got three senior center backs back there, two of them are captains, and we’ve been locking everyone up,” Damiani said. “I think we’ve got a strong back line and I think we’re going to carry that through the rest of the season.”
Strath Haven created more after halftime, forcing five saves from Jake Barber, though none terribly difficult. The biggest came in the 51st, Barber charging off his line to kick away an effort by Gabe Broome down the left channel. He got both hands to a glancing header by Plunkett off a free kick in the 76th.
Radnor’s payoff for its defensive toil was delayed. But when it came, it proved worth the wait.
“You go after goals and it doesn’t work out,” Fisk said. “But then it’s that drive of, I want to score, I want to score, because look how fantastic that was. That’s what keeps driving us.”
Also in the Central League:
Upper Darby 2, Penncrest 1 >> Dante Cholmeley-Jones scored for the Lions, who came up short. Details for the Royals were not reported.
Marple Newtown 2, Garnet Valley 1 >> Aran Trainor’s penalty kick in overtime gave the Tigers the victory. Dante Scarduzio also scored for Marple.
Chris Finnegan forced the game to OT with a goal in the 78th minute.
