Spectacular goal by Keion Randolph gives Pennsbury win over Council Rock South
Outplayed in the second half by visiting Council Rock South, it would have been easy for Pennsbury to pack things in and settle for a 1-1 tie with its Suburban One League (SOL) National Conference rivals.
With less than three minutes to go, Falcons senior midfielder Keion Randolph had another idea as he streaked toward a rebound near the top of the right-hand corner of the box. Randolph beat the defender’s attempt at a clearing pass, turned toward the net and blasted home the game-winner in the far left-hand corner.
“It’s all about the counter-attack in high school soccer,’ said Pennsbury senior midfielder Alex Kardos. “That’s how we pulled it out. We played a fastball down the line. It popped out and then Keion just saw the net and just shot it.’
When it was all over, the Falcons weren’t sure if they were sucking so much wind because they just spent the previous 40 minutes chasing Golden Hawks all over their home field or if they were suffering from the entero-virus. One thing’s for sure, a bug has infected Pennsbury.
“Today was a hard game,’ admitted Kardos, afterward. “A lot of the guys are sick; we’re struggling with a virus right now.’
“But we pulled it out, stuck with it, kept going on offense.
“The defense definitely gave it a big game for us.
“Keion had a big shot, he saw the net and put it side panel. That’s the best you can do with that.’
The Hawks were the chasing birds in the first half. Indeed, the Falcons outshot CR South 7-2 before the intermission with most of the action in the Hawks’ half of the field.
Twenty-one minutes into the contest, it paid off for Pennsbury as junior Colin Marks played a corner kick into the short side of the South net that completely handcuffed keeper Chase Spinelli.
“Just a complete lack of concentration on our part — from the goalkeeper all the way down to the defenders,’ said Hawks head coach Alan Nicholl. “There was absolutely no angle and it went directly in.’
The Falcons spent the remainder of the period blasting one shot after another at the visitors’ net. CR South was the team that would come up with the next goal, however.
With less than three minutes to go in the first half, Pennsbury was called for a violation inside the box, resulting in a penalty kick. Junior Brent Weinstein, who was knocked down on the infraction, blasted home the equalizer, boosting the Hawks’ hopes throughout the remainder of the contest.
“They were outworking us and we needed to pick it up in the second half,’ stated South senior Mark Jurewicz. “That goal really picked us up.’
The Hawks went into the half and talked about it, really talked about it — what they needed to do to put some concerted pressure on the Falcon goal.
