By Neil Geoghegan
ngeoghegan@21st-centurymedia.com
@NeilMGeoghegan on Twitter
TREDYFFRIN >> The Conestoga and Downingtown East boys’ soccer coaches each have claimed, in no uncertain terms, that the district’s premier defensive unit this fall is theirs.
That assertion was put to the test during Tuesday’s District 1 4A Semifinal at Teamer Field, and ’Stoga made a strong statement with a 5-1 triumph over the visiting Cougars.
“We set it as a goal before the season to win the district, and I think (our players) fully understand the importance of getting a home game in the first round of states,” said Pioneers’ head coach Dave Zimmerman.
Still unbeaten at 19-0-1 overall, the top-seeded Pioneers advance to Saturday’s district title match against No. 6 seed Abington, to be held at Spring-Ford. Fourth-seeded East falls to 16-4 overall and will host No. 7 seed West Chester Rustin Thursday in the consolation final. Rustin lost to Abington, 2-0, Tuesday in the district semifinal.
Like Conestoga, the Cougars have already qualified for the upcoming PIAA Tournament.
“We have plenty of soccer to play, and my boys are pretty fired up about that,” said East head coach Tom Creighton. “They are holding their head up high.
“It was great for our boys to get this type of experience. It’s our first time in this position as a program. This was a state tournament-caliber game and that is huge for us.”
It’s true. The Cougars have never advanced this far in districts. But ’Stoga is a district contender every season.
“Scoring this many goals in a district semifinal is kind of unheard of,” said Conestoga senior forward Kole Wintersteen, who wound up notching the game winner.
“We were a little bit flat in the first half, but I couldn’t be happier with the way we responded in the second half,” Zimmerman added.
The two sides entered the day having a combined 26 shutouts this season. In an evenly played opening half, both defenses surrendered a single goal. But it was a different story in the second half as the Pioneers’ depth began to make a difference.
“At every position we have two or three guys that can really bring the quality every time they come in. So we’ve always been a second half team,” Wintersteen said.
“(East) didn’t substitute as much as we did, and the wind was at our backs in the second half,” Zimmerman added. “But, honestly, we just made a lot of shots. Sometimes they just go in, so the final score may be a bit misleading.”
Wintersteen delivered the difference maker about seven minutes into the second half, and then 91 seconds later ’Stoga scored again to take command. Wintersteen’s goal was out of the air with high velocity after several rebounds resulted in a loose ball.
“All I remember is that I took a shot, it bounced back, and a few seconds later I scored,” he recalled. “We were just peppering the net, and one went in.”
And it was 2-1 for a short period of time because senior midfielder Ryan Zellefrow doubled the lead moments later with a gorgeous effort slotted for the upper left corner of the net.
And then the Pioneers wrapped up a dominating half with two more the rest of the way. Senior Westin Fryberger’s long blast found its mark with 18:35 remaining, and defender Charlie Culbert hit paydirt in the final minute.
Heading into Tuesday’s game, Downingtown East had allowed a total of 11 goals in 19 outings dating back to August. But Conestoga got five in just 80 minutes.
“Our shooting was unusually accurate,” Zimmerman acknowledged.
“(Conestoga) is a darn good team,” Creighton added. “But my boys came here to fight, and they put up a battle.
“It was two very good teams, but they got the better of us. If you give an opponent like that room to breathe, they are going to make you pay.”
The Cougars actually had more first half shots on goal, but it was ’Stoga who struck first when Brody Costin fired a shot that was saved, but not corralled, by keeper Paolo Shordjian. Senior forward Ethan Howard was on hand to tap in the loose ball.
Seven minutes later, however, the Cougars tied it by scoring just the seventh goal surrendered by the Pioneers’ defense all season. It started with a free kick by Alex Fedor and ended with a boot by midfielder Aseem Rastogi.
“Credit Downingtown East,” Zimmerman said. “They were very good winning 50-50 balls in the first half and just making it difficult for us to get into any kind of flow.”
Conestoga brought in a slew of free substitutes in the final five minutes of the first half and came close twice to regaining the lead. With 4:27 on the clock, the Pioneers’ Luke Nevins had a shot bounce off the far post, and later ’Stoga forced a kick save by Shordjian during a frenzy in front of the East goal.
“We didn’t make any tactical changes at halftime, but it was definitely a mentality switch,” Wintersteen explained. “(East) was hungrier in the first half so we had to level-up in that department.”
The final stats were close in shots on goal (9-8), but ’Stoga had a 2-0 edge in corners, and even goaltender Ryan Carella got into the act on offense, notching a pair of assists off goalie kicks.
“That’s very unusual,” Zimmerman said.
Conestoga 5, Downingtown East 1
Downingtown East 1 0 — 1
Conestoga 1 4 — 5
Downingtown East goal: Rastogi.
‘Conestoga goals: Howard, Wintersteen, Zellefrow, Fryberger, Culbert.
Goalie saves: Shordjian (DE) 4; Carella (C) 7.
