Eagles prevail in Class AA final
Bethlehem holds on for Class AA sectional title when Shen’s late tying goal waved off
Top-seeded Bethlehem girls’ soccer registers 2-1 victory over secondseeded Shenendehowa in Section II Class A A final.
Piper Gregory accomplished what any soccer player not wearing goalie gloves hopes to experience by scoring the winning goal in a championship game. The Bethlehem senior striker did so Monday night, except Shenendehowa isn’t so sure.
Gregory converted a feed from seventh-grader Claire Hutton with 3:25 remaining, but the Plainsmen believed it scored an equalizer with 1:58 left. That tally, however, was waved off.
The top-seeded Eagles endured the remaining 98 seconds and registered a 2-1 victory over the second-seeded Plainsmen in the Section II Class AA final at Stillwater High School.
“It is always sweet. Sectionals are very difficult to win,” Bethlehem coach Tom Rogan said.
“We had a great season. It is awesome to top it off with a championship win,” Gregory said.
Gregory was still coming to grips that her ninth goal of the season clinched a championship for Bethlehem, the program’s fourth title since 2010.
“It is always a dream to score the winning goal. Obviously, you always think about it,” Gregory said. “When it happened, everyone was in a little bit of shock.”
Shenendehowa was stunned that the goal it thought had tied it was denied. Shenendehowa coach Holli Nirsberger said the official told her Bethlehem goalie Shannon Donnelly was deemed to have possession of the ball.
“Which is questionable, at best,” Nirsberger said. “That ball would not have wound up in the back of the net with the keeper having clean possession.
“You know what? I am not a person to make excuses. When you have a team battling and scraping their way to get back into this game, for the referee to make that game-changing call — in a sectional final when you’ve trained all season — is a hard sell to kids.”
The Eagles (17-1-1), on the strength of goals from Gregory and senior striker Grace Hotaling, advance to play Section III champion Fayetteville-manlius (14-3-1) Saturday at Bodley High School in Fulton. The 20th-ranked Hornets captured their first sectional title in 22 years by upsetting top-seeded Baldwinsville, the 2017 state champions, 3-2 Saturday.
Hotaling, the Eagles’ leading scorer, provided her team a fabulous start when she gathered in a feed from Hutton and rifled a shot into the net for a 1-0 lead in the seventh minute. It was her 29th goal of the season.
Both teams generated some solid chances, yet the game stayed 1-0 for over 60 minutes until Shenendehowa’s Bella Guarracino scored on a long ball that appeared to redirect before passing Donnelly with 12:03 remaining.
“Obviously, it is a little bit of a shock. You are nervous at first,” Hotaling said of seeing the game tied. “You just know you have to keep going, get your team back together again and hopefully pull out with the ‘W.’”
Hutton, a Suburban Council first team all-star, delivered her second assist of the game in setting up Gregory.
“We worked it through the midfield and I am just happy we were able to get it to the front. All I had to do was tip it off,” Gregory said.
“She is a very talented kid. To do it in a sectional final is tremendous,” Nirsberger said of Hutton. “She is so active. Very smart. Just a special kid.”
Hotaling characterized Bethlehem’s defensive unit in front of Donnelly, comprised of senior captain Sydney Smith, senior Emma Sinuc, junior Beatrice Jones and sophomore Marissa Mastracco as a “sturdy fence the entire season.”
The 2018 season will continue with Saturday’s state quarterfinal contest.
“It really has been a great season. Shen put up a great fight,” Gregory said. “It is really awesome to come out of here with the championship.”