High School Extra /News and notes
Clarence plenty smart in victory
A dummy play turned out to be an awfully smart decision for the Clarence boys soccer team, which is top-ranked among large schools.
Alex Stephan let a pass go between his legs, right to sophomore teammate Derek Meier, who buried the only goal against third-ranked Williamsville North with just 53 seconds remaining Friday. The victory clinched the ECIC I championship for the Red Devils (13-0 overall, 8-0 league) against the team that won it last fall.
“By dummying that pass, it allowed Derek to have a nice clear shot and he put it right through their goalie’s legs,” said Clarence coach Mike Silverstein. “It was a really nice play for us.”
Nate Konitzer made seven saves for Clarence.
Williams stays with it for Quakers
The biggest rebound in the ECIC I boys soccer showdown between Orchard Park and Lancaster didn’t come after a shot on goal.
Orchard Park senior captain Tyler Williams missed a penalty shot late in the second half, but came right back to score the game-winning goal with three minutes left to give the Quakers a 2-1 ECIC I victory.
“After [a missed penalty kick] a lot of kids would keep their heads down, but he kept working hard,” said OP coach Josh Dannecker. “He just kept plugging away. It shows a lot of character after you might think that maybe you let your team down.”
Lancaster, ranked ninth among large schools, took a 1-0 halftime lead but senior Scott Campbell tied it for No. 5 Orchard Park about 10 minutes into the second half, cutting across the middle of the field and converting a pass from senior Dan Berlad.
With five minutes to play, Williams shot his penalty kick wide. Two minutes later, he scored after a crossing pass from Campbell.
Sean Conway made 18 saves for OP (8-4-1, 6-2-1 ECIC I).
Elsewhere in boys soccer:
• David Pierce scored about 12 minutes into the game and Will Gisel made seven saves for Nichols (6-5, 4-1) in its 1-0 Monsignor Martin Association win over No. 4 Canisius (9-1, 4-1).
• Top-ranked small school East Aurora (12-0) got goals from Kevin Kot, Shane Healy and Devin Aiken in its 3-0 win over Holland in ECIC IV. “We were just able to finish on our chances,” said Blue Devils coach Kevin Beale, who got a shutout from Dan Coulter.
• Ed Sarcione scored four times for Eden in its wild 6-5 ECIC IV victory over Lackawanna, which got two goals from Ronald Cox. The Steelers hit two goal posts in the final four minutes.
Etcetera
• Nichols had its 13-game winning streak come to a halt with a 5-3 loss to Aquinas in Rochester. The Vikings had defeated the state’s fifth-ranked team, 2-1, at home on Sept. 22, but fell into an early 2-0 hole and never recovered Friday.
• Courtney Mann and Caitlin Courtade scored and Simone Walker made 13 saves for Frontier in its 2-0 nonleague girls soccer win over Hamburg.
• Shelby Hall scored six minutes into the game and Megan Smith tallied with four minutes left as sixth-ranked Hamburg (9-1-2) scored a 2-0 ECIC field hockey win over No. 4 Iroquois.
• The Orchard Park boys golf team moved to 7-0 with a 300-305 decision over Lancaster at Orchard Park Country Club. Kyle Jeziorski and Sam Levinboske both shot 38 to lead the Quakers.
• In cross country, both the Williamsville North boys and Amherst girls defended their titles at the Town of Amherst Championships.
On the Web
For more on Friday’s action, see the Prep Talk blog at buffalonews.com/blogs.
