Nov 11, 2017 4 min read

GREENSBURG – Two high-scoring teams, Bedford and Waynesburg, waged a defensive battle in the PIAA Class 2A girls soccer playoffs Saturday at Hempfield High School.

It took just one goal to determine a winner, the second consecutive time Bedford has eeked out a victory to remain alive for a state title.

Sophomore Taylor Downs found the back of the net early, scoring the game’s only goal in the seventh minute, and freshman goalkeeper Lindsay Mowry, with the aid of a brief relief appearance by sophomore Kiley Horne following an injury timeout, made it stand in a 1-0 quarterfinals-round victory.

The Bison (23-0) advance to the semifinals Tuesday against either District 10 Mercyhurst Prep or District 9 Karns City.

“We normally can get at least one (goal),” Waynesburg Central coach Joe Kijowski said. “They’re a very skilled team. I knew they were a possession team, for sure, and they did that today. They did a nice job.”

District 5 champion Bedford reached the quarterfinals by outlasting District 3 runner-up Schuylkill Valley, 1-0, last Tuesday.

“We score a lot of goals during the season, but I know that when you get to this level, this is the way it usually seems like it ends up,” Bedford coach Jeff Thomas said. “Our defense never quit.”

On Saturday, with WPIAL champion Waynesburg (20-2) applying constant pressure, Bedford didn’t break on a PIAA playoffs stage for a second time in a row.

“I’m very surprised at how this game played out,” Kijowski said. “Sometimes, it’s just not with you. They play a very good possession-type game. Our effort was there, but you do get a little bit desperate, and you can become more desperate as time winds down.”

The Raiders found themselves scrambling throughout, perhaps a bit more frustrated than they had been accustomed to during a stellar season that had produced only one other loss.

Waynesburg came in averaging 5.5 goals in four postseason games, including three in the WPIAL playoffs.

“I thought we got a little bit too greedy, at times, with some of our passes from the back rather than playing up through the midfield,” Kijowski said. “You just keep banging at that wall and make sure you knock it down, and today we couldn’t knock it down.”

Downs’ game-deciding goal for Bedford came at 32:03 of the first half, when she took a pass from Horne, playing in her regular position at defender, and beat Waynesburg freshman goalkeeper Mckenzie Booth.

After that, it became a long, defensive struggle with both teams misfiring on several strong scoring opportunities.

“It’s one letdown, it’s one shot, it’s one bounce, it’s one call,” Kijowski said. “There’s a lot that can determine it. The higher you get in the skill category, one call or one point can kind of make a difference.”

Bedford wasted its best chance to add to its lead in the second half, when junior Amber Thomas’ penalty kick sailed above the net with 8:46 to go.

There was yet another notable moment, when senior Allison Pittman couldn’t convert for the Bison in the final minute after losing control of a pass in front of Booth.

In the first half, Mowry stopped Waynesburg sophomore Jillian Kijowski’s point-blank shot at the 21:30 mark.

When a desperation midfield shot by Kijowski’s sister, freshman Reah Kijowski, who scored three goals in a 6-0 first-round victory over District 10’s Harbor Creek, trickled harmlessly towards the net as time expired, Bedford’s players celebrated.

“We like to play a little more offense, but we ended up playing a lot of defense,” Thomas, the Bedford coach, said. “We just kept playing ball out front. If nothing else, deflect the ball off the other team, whatever they could do to keep it out of their end.

“They did what they had to do to shut them down. We just wouldn’t give them any space back there.”

From a coach’s view, Kijowski raved at the progress his program has made during the four years of his current senior class. Waynesburg went from a five-victory season in 2014 to a WPIAL championship this year.

“I can’t say enough about how great it was to coach all of them,” he said. “They’re going to be missed, for sure.”