Nov 2, 2015 4 min read

WEXFORD – It took three years and two playoff runs cut short, but the wait is over for Canon-McMillan boys soccer.

The Big Macs are returning to the WPIAL Class AAA championship match at Highmark Stadium and it was two seniors who helped them pull off a memorable upset.

Senior striker Nick Sodini scored with just over 11 minutes remaining and senior goalkeeper Christian Snatchko made nine saves as fourth-seeded Canon-McMillan defeated top-seeded Seneca Valley 1-0 in a WPIAL Class AAA semifinal match at North Allegheny High School.

The Big Macs (17-3) advance to the championship at Highmark Stadium on the South Side of Pittsburgh, where they will face No. 2 Fox Chapel either Friday or Saturday. It is C-M’s first appearance in the title match since it defeated Upper St. Clair in 2012.

“It feels great to be able to play for a championship twice in four years,” Sodini said. “It’s exciting. It doesn’t matter who we’re playing. We’re going to be ready.”

The Raiders (14-2-1) utilized four defenders in their formation but with little success in the second half. C-M controlled the midfield and finally found Sodini open on the perimeter, where the shifty four-year starter outran Seneca Valley defenders in the attacking third.

Sodini finally found room in the 28th minute of the second half, when he collected a loose ball, turned toward the net at the top of the 18-yard box and fired a rising shot into the top-left corner of the net for the 1-0 lead.

“It was a huge goal,” Snatchko said. “We badly needed that goal. It would have been nice for us to get one earlier, but once we got the lead, our defense came up big.”

Snatchko had much to do with the Big Macs escaping with a win. With just over two minutes remaining, Seneca Valley junior midfielder Griffin Mathew received a pass at the top of the 18-yard box and Snatchko made a diving save to his right to stop the wide shot.

He made another save in the final minute when he got a fingertip on a ball that almost snuck beneath the cross bar and the Big Macs defenders cleared the Raiders’ final attempt to seal the win.

“We’re getting on the bus and leaving … all I have to say is I’m disappointed,” said Seneca Valley head coach George Williams, who declined to comment further.

Seneca Valley, which had four corner kicks in the second half and outshot the Big Macs 9-2, pressed in the final minutes by utilizing four forwards, but a failure to capitalize on set pieces was costly in the end.

Both teams used a defensive approach in the first half, but the Raiders had Canon-McMillan solved for the first 20 minutes, preventing the Big Macs from finding the ball in open space on the outside. C-M head coach Larry Fingers came in with three different strategies and he needed each one.

“We changed how we played all year,” Fingers said. “We tried playing them straight up and what we were doing early wasn’t working. We had to go gimmicky with them. We were waiting for that moment and we took advantage. We thought one would do it and we could hold them off. That’s probably the best high school soccer team out there.”

Seneca Valley controlled possession for much of the first half, but it was the Big Macs who almost broke through for the first goal in the 38th minute.

Sodini took a corner kick that sailed into the five-yard box and was headed by Noah French into the arms of Seneca Valley senior goalkeeper Luke Pecora. C-M did not have another shot on goal until Sodini’s goal.

“There was a lot of hope in those final minutes,” Snatchko said. “I just hoped a ball wouldn’t slip through, but it’s so exciting for it to be over and to be moving on to the championship.”