Youth/High School Soccer
Set piece execution, gritty defense leads Delco Christian to first round win at states
Delco Christian’s experience and depth were crucial ingredients to a first round win in the PIAA Class A tournament over Lancaster Catholic on Tuesday night.
Playing after an emotional defeat for the girls team in the first game of a doubleheader at West Chester Henderson, the Knights (17-2-1) came out with the confidence teams can gather this time of year after lifting their second straight District 1 trophy a week earlier.
Limiting Lancaster Catholic’s attack going forward, however, proved far less difficult than finding chances going the other way. An organized Crusaders back line did well to clear lines and keep dynamic winger Justin Ma in check but a set piece chance midway through the first half delivered the breakthrough. It came off a right-footed delivery from Cole Matthews on a corner kick that found Hudson Young, whose powerful header went through traffic and hit the net for the 1-0 lead.
Playing with the one-goal lead, senior captain Matteo DeBellis – the hero of the 1-0 win over Dock Mennonite in the district final – dropped to the back line and combined with senior center back Ian Kauffman to cut down the Crusaders’ efforts to play direct. Senior captain and goalkeeper Carter Dill was forced to make a few saves, diving to his right a couple times in the second half to deny chances, and as the clock ticked down and a frenzied urgency set in for Lancaster Catholic’s for an equalizer.
“They had some creative runs and were trying to confuse our defense but we stayed with it for the most part and a couple times we lost marks they got a couple of good chances,” said Dill, who recorded his third straight clean sheet in the postseason. “It was a really great effort from our defense.”
The 1-0 win was just their third 1-0 victory of the season and their second straight.
Head coach Rob Atkins went to his bench frequently as the second half wore on to finish off the game, rotating forwards to run at the Lancaster Catholic back line. Freshman Allen Wang came up with a key tackle to prevent a counter attack during his shift and freshman Ollie Fenly put in crucial shifts. Senior midfielder Josh Rao was also instrumental with his work rate through the midfield.
“From front to back and back to front, guys stepped up tonight,” Atkins said. “We knew that Lancaster Catholic was going to be a really tough team. They were really well organized and well coached but guys just understood their assignments and executed.”
Up next, the Knights will face District 4 champions Benton, which knocked off Wyoming Seminary – DC’s second round opponent last year – in overtime. The quarterfinal is scheduled for Saturday but the time and location are still to be announced.
