Shady Side Academy shuts down Waynesburg
CANONSBURG – In order to avenge last year’s playoff loss to Shady Side Academy, the Waynesburg High School boys soccer team needed a strong start and a solid offensive effort.
The Raiders got neither.
Shady Side Academy scored two early goals and dominated the offensive end for a 3-0 victory in the quarterfinals of the WPIAL Class AA playoffs.
Waynesburg finishes the season with a 12-7 record. Shady Side Academy, which is 11-7-1, advances to the semifinals against either Mt. Pleasant or Central Valley.
Shady Side Academy defeated Waynesburg 3-2 in last year’s quarterfinals on the way to a runnerup finish in the WPIAL.
Shady Side Academy got the only goal it needed 1:01 into the match after Waynesburg goalkeeper Scott Benco made a save to his left while going to the turf. The ball slipped out of his grasp to the right and Walter Navid tapped it in for the first of his two goals.
“When you give up a goal in under two minutes, it takes the wind out of your sails,” said Waynesburg head coach Matt Blair. “That’s a good team, well coached. I’m proud of our guys. We played hard that second half and didn’t give up a goal.” ‘
Waynesburg fell behind 2-0 five minutes later when Max Farner headed in a corner kick by Adrian Beckford.
Shady Side Academy’s third goal came after a scramble in front of the net. The ball skipped out and Navid sent it home from 23 yards to make it 3-0.
“We have a good rivalry going. We had a fast start, but they responded well, but we were on the right side of it,” said Shady Side Academy head coach Ed Ellsworth.
“(The first goal) took the pressure off. Just a minute into the game, you’re up 1-0. It allows you to manage the game a little more.”
The first half was abysmal for Waynesburg, which not only gave up early goals but failed to generate any attack. The result was a 3-0 deficit.
Shady Side Academy’s defense was supported by an offensive rush that kept Waynesburg on its heels.
“In the first half, we were so rushed and so hurried, we couldn’t get the ball off our foot. We couldn’t get a rhythm going. That definitely played to their advantage,” said Blair.
Benco made two outstanding saves, one on a shot ticketed for the left corner and a second on a strange skipping ball that ricocheted over the top of the net or it would have been 5-0.
Shady Side Academy silenced the Raiders top two scorers in sophomore forward Gavin Benson and senior forward Blake Brewer. Benson entered the match with 25 goals and Brewer 19.
“With the horses we have in Gavin Benson, Blake Brewer and Jack Church, I knew we had the ability to get back into it,” said Blair. “Once they scored the third goal, I knew it was going to be pretty tough.”
Dylan Cowell had Waynnesburg’s best scoring chance with just over two minutes remaining on a run down the left side to connect on a cross. But he shot it wide, thanks to a good defensive effort by Farner.