Conestoga, Salesianum, & Lower Dauphin crowned state champions

The final weekend of the high school soccer season ended in glory for a few teams from the greater Philadelphia region.

Conestoga got a goal from junior forward Chris Donovan with under 19 minutes left to beat Elizabethtown 1-0 and capture their first state title since 2011 in the PIAA Class 4A championship in Hershey on Saturday.

This, a day after Lower Dauphin capped a perfect 28-0-0 season with a 3-0 win over Northwestern Lehigh for the Class 3A title.

Timmy Townsend scored in the first half and Jackson Becher added a second half brace to lead the Falcons to glory at Hersheypark Stadium on Friday night.

In Delaware, a familiar champion was crowned in the Division 1 final as Salesianum School won their seventh straight state title with a 2-0 win over Appoquinimink. Jason Blackwell had an assist and a goal to lead the Sals to their 16th title and the 13th in the last 15 years.

Tower Hill captured the Division II title with a 4-2 win over top-seeded Indian River on Saturday night behind a brace from Andrew Cercena and goals from Drew Manning and Malcolm Johnson. The title was the first for the Wilmington school since 1988.

Over in New Jersey, Haddon Township had to settle for a share of the Group 1 title after a 1-1 draw with Verona. Goalkeeper Kieran Burns was unable to stop the tying penalty kick in the second half, but made six saves – two at the end of regulation and two more in overtime – to carry the Hawks to the program’s second ever state title and first since 2011.

Michael Reece scored the lone goal for Haddon Township off a free kick in the 43rd minute. The shared state title was the lone trophy for a South Jersey team this year: Hunterdon Central won in Group IV, Ramapo in Group III and Bernards in Group 2 in the state finals at Kean University on Sunday.