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2009 MID-PENN CHAMPS, 2008 "AA" DISTRICT III CHAMPS & 2007 "AA" STATE CHAMPS!!
PALMYRA COUGARS BOY'S SOCCER
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Final Loss Cannot Dim Palmyra's Achievments
November 18, 2009, 12:47PM
Ending a season on a loss is always disappointing, especially when that loss is in a post-season game.
So the Palmyra boys soccer team can hardly be blamed for being upset after falling to Hampton 2-1 in the PIAA Class AA semifinals on Tuesday night. But hopefully, the Cougars have the chance to realize what they accomplished.
This season Palmyra went 25-2 this season, going 14-0 in the Mid-Penn Keystone Division and taking the Mid-Penn championship. Along the way, the Cougars got the attention of the teams they played, even the ones that defeated them.
“We haven’t seen a quality team like that all year,” Hampton head coach Chuck Kelley said after Tuesday’s semifinals.
To give a frame of reference, Kelley’s Talbots had played Mars, the District 7 champion and the team Palmyra beat 2-1 in the state quarterfinals.
Although the Cougars did not win a district or state title this year, the seniors on the roster have both of those to their credit. Palmyra won the District 3 title last year over Fleetwood 3-2 in overtime, and the Cougars won the state championship two seasons ago with a 2-0 win over Mars. Starting with that state title season, Palmyra has won 64 of its last 79 games.
“The last couple of years [the seniors] set quite a few records and set quite a few standards,” Palmyra head coach Craig Tyrrell said. “The classes coming up have a lot to follow up on.”
Palmyra had 10 seniors who started throughout this season, and three more on the roster. Prominent among the upper classmen was forward Brett Jankouskas, who scored 23 goals and had 23 assists, including one assist in Tuesday’s semifinal.
Also standing out was goalie Josh Lineaweaver, who anchored a defense that allowed just 0.56 goals per game and recorded 15 shutouts this season. Seven of those shutouts were in a row.
But other upperclassmen made an impact on this season, often when the Cougars needed it most.
Palmyra was in danger of being knocked out of the District 3 quarterfinals by Northern when senior Zach Lee scored with 6:47 left to go in regulation. Jankouskas combined with fellow seniors Reed Kreider and Tommy Miller to score in penalty kicks for a 1-1 (3-1) win that allowed Palmyra to reach the final four of the state, instead of sitting outside of the district’s final four.
Palmyra Stopped in State Semis
By PAT HUGGINS
Staff Writer
Lebanon Daily News
Posted: HOLLIDAYSBURG- By any measure, it was a remarkable season.
Just not as remarkable as the Palmyra boys' soccer team would have liked it to be.
Despite tasting defeat only twice in 27 games, the Cougars' final memory of the thrill ride that was the 2009 season will be an unpleasant one, thanks to Tuesday's gut-wrenching 2-1 loss to Hampton in the semifinal round of the PIAA Class AA state playoffs at Hollidaysburg Junior High School.
After 22 straight wins to open the season during which it se cured both the Mid-Penn Key stone Division crown and the overall Mid-Penn Conference championship, Palmyra was ultimately denied the District Three and PIAA titles it seemed des tined to hold, first by a fairly surprising 1-0 defeat to Tulpehocken in the district semis two weeks ago, then by Tuesday night's semi-stunning loss to District Seven runner-up Hampton.
Despite having endured three defeats to Palmyra's quarterfinal victim Mars, Hampton proved to be a most formidable opponent, jumping on the Cougars early with the first of Zach Carter's two goals 10:03 into the game, then surviving a spirited Palmyra comeback bid on the strength of Carter's tiebreaking game-winner with a mere 4:48 to play.
"One of us had to win, and unfortunately it was us that lost," said Palmyra coach Craig Tyrrell. "They (the Cougars) know that they were this close, so it's kind of a tough thing. But we had a good season. You just gotta take what you can out of it."
"They're an excellent team," said Hampton coach Chuck Kelley, heaping praise on the fallen Cougars. "We haven't seen a quality team like that this year."
Though it took Carter's second goal- a score that came after a flurry in front of the Palmyra cage that included a brilliant diving save by keeper Josh Lineaweaver and a near-save off the goal line by a scrambling Palmyra defender-to put the Cougars away, it was the senior mid fielder's first tally that may have been the most important.
With Palmyra struggling to possess the ball and making some uncharacteristically sloppy passes, Carter got Hampton (19-4) on the board at 29:57 when he took a feed from Chris Hunkele that bounced past a Palmyra de fender and ripped it into the net for a quick 1-0 lead.
"We didn't settle in quick enough," said Tyrrell. "It took us a while to get into the game. The last 10 minutes of the first half we settled down and picked it up. The second half we pretty much out played them, but they got the deciding goal."
Had it not been for the extremely aggressive and strong play of Hampton keeper John Lichina, who repeatedly came off his line in the first half to cut off the Palmyra attack, the Cougars may well have answered with a goal prior to intermission.
But as it was, Palmyra went into the break staring at a 1-0 deficit after not putting a shot on goal in the first half thanks to Lichina's aforementioned aggressiveness.
"He played well off the line," said Tyrrell, of Lichina. "He got off the line quickly. He kinda made the difference with chances. He kinda set the tempo, we knew that we couldn't play through because he was gonna come off quick ly."
To its credit, Palmyra came out with renewed energy and enthusiasm after the break, and it paid off in full with 24:43 to play when Zach Lee notched the equalizing goal off a nifty set-up from Brett Jankouskas. But, despite several more quality scoring chances, that was as good as it would get for Palmyra.
The contest finally slipped away for good after the normally automatic Jankouskas misfired on a free kick from just outside the box with 7:15 left. That led to a Hampton counter attack that Carter finished off successfully with just under five minutes to play.
There was a bit of controversy surrounding the goal- some Cougars appeared to argue that the ball had not crossed the line prior to being cleared away- but Tyrrell did not dispute the call.
"Obviously, it crossed the line," said Tyrrell. "The ref called that it crossed the line, so I gotta go with what he said. I think Josh might have seen it, and I think he agreed that it was across the line."
The Cougars got one last solid try at tying things up, but that slipped away when Jankouskas' perfect cross to the left side was booted over the cage by Michael Thompson with 2:45 left.
It was perhaps appropriate that Jankouskas and Thompson, two of 13 Palmyra seniors, teamed up for the last scoring chance of the season.
After all, it was this group of seniors who were the catalysts for lifting the Palmyra program to heights never seen before they arrived. In the last three years, Palmyra captured, among other things, a state title (2007), a district title (2008) and a Mid-Penn championship this season.
Not a bad run, no matter how it ended.
"They've set a good standard for the program," said Tyrrell. "The guys coming behind, they have a lot to follow. But we expect nothing less."
pathuggins@ldnews.com; 272-5611, ext. 141
AT RIGHT: Palmyra goalie Josh Lineaweaver makes a leaping catch during Tuesday s PIAA boys soccer semifinals in Hollidaysburg. (LEBANON DAILY NEWS GORDON OLIVER )
THE WGAL VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS ARE BELOW:
Frantic Goal Late in Game Knocks Out Palmyra
A frantic goal is the difference between Hampton and Palmyra in the state soccer semifinals.
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
BY DAVID BOHR dbohr@patriot-news.com
HOLLIDAYSBURG - Zachary Carter's second goal of the game with 4:48 remaining gave Hampton a 2-1 win over Palmyra in the PIAA Class AA boys' soccer semifinals Tuesday night at Hollidaysburg High School.
The Talbots (19-4), the District 7 runner-up, will play District 1 champion Octorara in the championship game at 2 p.m. Saturday at Hersheypark Stadium. Octorara won the other state semifinal 2-1 in double overtime against Fleetwood.
The deciding goal came on a chaotic play.
Cougars goalie Josh Lineaweaver made the save of the initial shot but did not immediately get control of the ball. Lineaweaver collided with Hampton's Keith Weinheimer as the ball rolled near the goal mouth.
Carter got a foot on it and directed it goalward when forward Michael Thompson attempted to sweep the ball away right at the goal line.
After Krikorian knocked the ball away, play continued for several seconds and Hampton even took another shot that went just high of the net. But the referee blew his whistle at that point and indicated that Carter's shot was in fact a goal.
"The ref said that it crossed the line, and I have to go with what he says," Palmyra head coach Craig Tyrrell said.
Carter put the Talbots up 1-0 just 10:03 into the contest. He took a pass from Chris Hunkele by getting behind the defensive backs, who weren't quite able to deflect the ball as it went by. Carter scored from the right side of the box.
"Here we are playing against a team we don't know, and that picked us up," Hampton coach Chuck Kelley said.
Hampton controlled play for most of the first half, with most of Palmyra's passes to get up the field going awry. The Talbots had a 6-0 shot advantage in the first half.
"We didn't settle in quickly enough," Tyrrell said. "We gave them too much space."
Although the Cougars (25-2) did not officially get a shot on goal in the first 40 minutes, they had several opportunities in the last 10 minutes. Brett Jankouskas and Tommy Miller had two opportunities to chase down the ball in the box for a scoring chance, but all four times Hampton goalie John Lichina came out of the net to either scoop up the ball with a dive or kick it out of danger.
"He's been an unsung hero," Kelley said. "He's been the backbone of this team in the playoffs."
Palmyra continued to pressure the net early in the second half, finally breaking through when Jankouskas came down the middle of the field and passed it to Zach Lee on his right. Lee fired it in from 16 yards out to tie the game at 1 with 24:43 remaining.
But the Cougars missed a couple of other second-half opportunities. Twice in the second half Jankouskas had a direct kick from about 20 yards, but both went high and out of bounds.
Lineaweaver made two leaping saves in the second half to keep Palmyra in the game. With 26 minutes to go, he snared a header by Carter during a corner play. Then with nine minutes to play, Jonathan Mercier appeared to have a shot destined for the top left corner when Lineaweaver made another jumping stop.
Lichina made three saves for the win, while Lineaweaver stopped 10 shots. The Talbots had a 12-4 advantage in shots and a 7-2 advantage in corners.
Hampton's only other appearance in the state finals was in 1990, when the Talbots were co-champions with Great Valley after a 0-0 championship game.
AT RIGHT: LEBANON DAILY NEWS GORDON OLIVER
Palmyra s Reed Kreider (20) passes the ball between the legs of Hampton s Zachary Carter.
Palmyra Jumps Over Mars Into State Semis
By PAT HUGGINS - Lebanon Daily News/GametimePa.com
Staff Writer
Posted: 11/14/2009 11:13:31 PM EST
CHAMBERSBURG - When in pursuit of a state championship, it never hurts to have a little luck riding shotgun.
Then again, the harder a team works, the luckier it seems to get.
Remarkable good fortune and plain old guts and tenacity came together to create a perfect storm for the Palmyra boys' soccer team Saturday afternoon in a hotly-contested PIAA Class AA state quarterfinal matchup with District Seven champion Mars at Chambersburg High School.
Locked in a tense 1-1 struggle late in the second half and fighting a sometimes uphill battle for their playoff life, the Cougars ultimately prevailed 2-1 in dramatic fashion thanks to a Mars own goal with 6:57 left and moved to within two wins of their second state championship in the last three years.
Ironically enough, Palmyra defeated Mars in the 2007 AA title game for its first state crown.
The decisive score came off a beautifully struck Jamel Manning corner kick that was directed toward Chris Parks, but instead found the head of a Mars defender, who in his haste to clear the ball out of harm's way ended up knocking it into the back of his own net.
Hey, whatever works. The now 25-1 Cougars, who a week ago Saturday had to fight their way into the state tournament via the District Three third-place game, now suddenly look like a team destined to bring home the ultimate prize.
First, however, there's the little matter of Tuesday's state semifinal matchup with District 7 runner-up Hampton, a 1-0 overtime winner over West Allegheny. Site and time for the contest will be announced today.
"He serves the ball really well," said Palmyra coach Craig Tyrrell of Manning's corner-kick abilities. "It's a dangerous spot where anything can happen, and with Chris and (Zach) Lee and a couple of those guys there, it did happen."
"I just look for an open area on the field and mostly look for Chris Parks," Manning said of his corner-kick strategy.
Though he didn't exactly hit his target dead-center, Manning got the ball close enough to the lanky Parks to force the costly mistake and ultimately put away a Mars club that enjoyed the better of the play from early in the first half to the middle of the second half.
After a beauty of a feed from Parks that set up goal-scoring machine Brett Jankouskas for the game's first tally seven minutes in, Palmyra was forced back on its heels by a Mars squad that more than lived up to its Fightin' Planets nickname.
Ryan McKenzie drew Mars even with 24:28 to go before the half when he knocked home the rebound of his own header that was initially saved by Cougar keeper Josh Lineaweaver. The score gave the Planets a surge of momentum they would not surrender until past the midway point of the second half.
But thanks to the stubborn work of a Palmyra defense anchored by Lineaweaver's five saves and boosted by spirited play from Dustin Stuck, Reed Kreider, David Lear, Luke Brandt and B.J. Johnson, Mars' persistent attacking went for naught.
"Those four or five guys back there, they almost look forward to the challenge," said Tyrrell. "They want somebody good to come at them. They played well, they played well together. And (Lineaweaver) controlled the box. That paid off."
It did, but it took a while for Palmyra to turn the tide.
But over the final 15 minutes or so, the Cougars regained the control they had lost, producing a couple near-miss scoring chances, including a beautiful Lee cross to the left post that Michael Thompson arrived at just a split-second too late to touch into the goal.
A Manning blast from the top of the circle was denied by Mars keeper Robbie Sigurdsson with just over 10 minutes to go, and Sigurdsson also turned away a Zack Krikorian shot a little over a minute later.
"We should have had two more goals," said Manning, with a smile, of the missed chances.
But with overtime beginning to beckon, Lady Luck made a welcome appearance with a big assist from Parks, who may not have actually scored the goal, but certainly did his best to make it happen.
"I just ran in on the ball, saw where it was going and tried to get in front of it," said Parks. "And it got just in front of me. I looked up and the ball's in the back of the net. I was trying to get in front of him and get my head on it, but I didn't get there fast enough. But it worked out."
And because it did, the Cougars bettered last year's state tourney appearance and continued their recovery from the district semifinal loss to Tulpehocken that ended their 22-game win streak to start the season.
"It's a tremendous thing to accomplish," said Tyrrell. "Even getting this far, because this is one step beyond where we were last year, so I think this means a lot to them. They know that we've moved beyond that and can actually keep going."
And there's only one place the Cougars are interested in stopping. Take a guess.
"I'm really proud of our team, in general," said Parks. "We couldn't get a district trophy, but we still have our next goal and we're gonna keep going."
At right: Jamel Manning takes on a Mars defender. Photo courtesy of Mandy Haldeman
Unheralded players give Palmyra a lift
Lee, Haldeman fill needed roles for Cougars.
Friday, November 13, 2009
BY LLOYD REIGEL ljreigel@gmail.com
Much of the focus during Palmyra's run to the PIAA soccer tournament has gone to its core of senior leaders, including high-scoring forward Brett Jankouskas, midfielder Kyle Schneider, center backs Reed Kreider and B.J. Johnson, and goalie Josh Lineaweaver.
Coach Craig Tyrrell's club wouldn't be alive at 23-1, however, without the recent contributions of players such as senior midfielder Zach Lee and sophomore forward Bret Haldeman.
Lee's goal with 6:37 left to play against Northern in the District 3-AA quarterfinals enabled the Cougars to prevail on penalty kicks 3-1.
Lee's seventh goal of the year came after a long Kreider free kick into the box. Chris Parks played the ball in front of the goal, where Lee's heads-up positioning allowed him to beat outstanding goalie Ramon Lobo to the ball.
In the District 3 third-place game -- coming after the Cougars suffered their only loss of the season in a 1-0 semifinal loss to Tulpehocken -- Haldeman was called on to replace injured Michael Thompson.
Haldeman also found himself in the right place at the right time. Jankouskas played a ball to left wing, putting Haldeman through with only Susquehannock goalie Tim Boyer to beat.
A Susquehannock defender tackled Haldeman from behind, resulting in a penalty kick.
When Jankouskas drilled it home for his 24th goal of the season, Haldeman's mark on the season was made.
"Brett [Jankouskas] made the play," said Haldeman, who scored two goals during the season. "He played the ball over their defense and I just ran onto it. When I got inside the penalty area, their goalie came out and the defender behind me took my legs out."
Tyrrell said he had complete confidence in Haldeman, even though the sophomore forward had played mostly on the JV team this year.
"Haldeman played well for the JVs, who were undefeated," Tyrrell said. "He's a good player. He played in a few Mid-Penn games. We needed him to open up the field. He's a good server of the ball with some quickness. When Thompson went down, we needed him to open the field for us."
Haldeman also took a few Palmyra corner kicks, one of which that nearly resulted in a goal. His in-swinger with 29:50 left to play was headed on goal by Dustin Stuck. The header beat Boyer just inside the far post before being headed away by defender Colton Ayres.
Unfortunately for Ayres, Haldeman's break down the left wing went behind him, accounting for the breakaway.
A rookie head coach with the defending AA state champions, Susquehannock's Willy Whitty said he had no problem with the call.
"We put ourselves in that position by not finishing our own chances," he said. "Palmyra's a good team, probably one of the top two or three quickest teams we faced all year.
"But we had our chances and didn't put them away. If we finish, we're not in that situation of letting the refs make a game-deciding call."
Cougars Beat Westmont Hilltop 5-0 in State Round of 16 Playoff Game
By JERRY REIGEL
For The Daily News
Posted: 11/11/2009 12:40:27 AM EST
HOLLIDAYSBURG - All it took was a three-hour bus ride and a date with District Six champ Westmont-Hilltop for the Palmyra soccer team to rediscover its shooting touch.
Having been held to two goals total in its last three District Three contests, Palmyra broke loose with four first-half goals on its way to a 5-0 victory at Hollidaysburg High in the Central Mountain region south of Altoona.
Michael Thompson got the Cougar scoring machine started with two goals in the first 20 minutes, followed by two Brett Jankouskas goals before half. Jeremy Benner finished the job with a goal in the final minute.
With the win, Palmyra moves to 24-1 and into the PIAA Class AA quarterfinals Saturday against Mars, the team Palmyra beat for the 2007 state championship at a site and time to be determined. Mars, the District Seven champ, beat Harbor Creek 2-1 Tuesday night.
Despite having scouted Palmyra in its 1-0 win over defending state champ Susquehannock Saturday in the District Three third-place game, Westmont found itself in a deep hole early, then was forced to chase the ball for 80 minutes.
Palmyra's skill on the ball and quickness up and down the field were too much for the Hilltoppers to overcome.
"If Palmyra isn't a state championship-caliber team, then I can't imagine who is," said Westmont coach Steve Meehan, whose team finished at 20-2. "They're the best team we've faced all year by far.
"They're well-coached, they're well-disciplined. They move the ball all over the field and their skill level is amazing. My goalie (Aaron Stonecypher, 12 saves) played a great game, and we still lost 5-0. But I'm happy for my kids. We made the final 16 in the state and earned an opportunity to play an outstanding team like Palmyra. I wish them all the best."
Palmyra totally dominated in shot with 30 to Westmont's 4.
"It's nice to finish again," said Palmyra coach Craig Tyrrell, in reference to the 1-0 loss to Tulpehocken in the district semifinals, sandwiched between a penalty-kick win over Northern and a 1-0 win over Susquehannock.
"They tried pressuring us up high early for the first 10 minutes, but we were able to handle it pretty well. After we got the first goal, it opened up nicely for us."
Thompson's first goal came at the 31:44 mark. Midfielder Chris Parks took a throw-in from the right corner and played it across to Thompson, who beat his man and Stonecypher with a right-footed shot inside the near post.
The same scenario followed with 21:11 left in the half, except Thompson found the ball on his left foot. This time, he shot it left-footed across the goal inside the far post.
Westmont's best chance came with 17:18 left in the half when Tyler Kleinmeyer broke free down right wing and found Kyle Kunkle in the box. Kunkle fired on goal, beating goalie Josh Lineaweaver but not the right post.
With Westmont's frustration growing by the minute, Jankouskas wove his way through the Hilltoppers' defense and scored unassisted at the 4:56 mark.
Two minutes later, the Cougars earned an indirect kick on the left side from 20 yards. Reed Kreider touched the ball for Jankouskas, who buried a low, hard roller inside the near post.
Tyrrell emptied his bench in the second half, with Benner capitalizing off a Brett Haldeman feed to end the game.
"I thought we played well defensively," said Tyrell. "Reed and B.J. (Johnson) handled everything in the middle. David Lear is playing well on the right and Dustin Stuck is doing a good job on the left. Stuck's a real competitor."
______________________________________________________________________________________________
By ERIC KNOPSNYDERTHE TRIBUNE-DEMOCRAT
HOLLIDAYSBURG — Steve Meehan knew Palmyra had a good boys soccer team.
The Westmont Hilltop coach just didn’t realize how good the Cougars were until he saw them beat his Hilltoppers 5-0 on Tuesday in the first round of the PIAA Class AA playoffs.
“That’s the best team I’ve ever seen. Ever.” Meehan said. “If they aren’t state champs, I’d be really surprised. They were a phenomenal team.”
The District 6 champion Hilltoppers (20-2) couldn’t keep up with the Cougars (24-1), who outshot Westmont 28-6. Michael Thompson and Brett Jankouskas each scored twice in the first half to give Palmyra a 4-0 lead. Westmont kept the District 3 third-place team off the board in the second half until Jeremy Benner scored with 15 seconds remaining.
“I thought we played well,” Palmyra coach Craig Tyrrell said. “Our task is to keep the ball as much as we can, and possess the ball. If we have it, they can’t score. They hustled at first and tried to push the tempo, but we were able to compose ourselves.”
Palmyra was ranked No. 1 in the state before being upset in the district playoffs by Tulpehocken.
“I think this is a new start for us,” Tyrrell said.
“We figured ‘Well that game is gone by, so now it’s a fresh league, pretty much.’ We’ll just take it one game at a time and see if we can get to the finals.”
Westmont only had a few scoring opportunities, with the best coming in the 18th minute.
Tyler Kleinmeyer sent a nice cross to Michael Burnheimer in the box, but Burnheimer’s shot hit the post and bounced out.
The second didn’t come until there were a little more than two minutes remaining, as Kleinmeyer had a breakaway, but his shot was stopped by Palmyra backup goalkeeper Nate McClellan.
The sophomore relieved starter Josh Lineaweaver, who didn’t need to stop a shot in the shutout.
Westmont keeper Aaron Stonecypher wasn’t so fortunate. The senior made six saves, including a spectacular diving stop in the 31st minute on a Kyle Schneider blast from 25 yards.
“He had some pretty good saves early,” Tyrrell said.
“Even when we started scoring a couple of goals, he still kept the game where if they scored one it would have been a different game.”
Despite the loss, Meehan was happy his team got a chance to play Palmyra.
“It’s going to be a real character builder, especially for our younger kids,” he said. “I’m so proud of our team, being top 16 in the state and getting to play a team like Palmyra and seeing what soccer is all about. I thought it was a great experience for everyone. I’m happy with our season. I’m proud of the kids. They’re great. One of the best seasons I’ve ever been a part of.”
Palmyra will now face Mars, the #1 seed from District 7 and is 22-1 overall, on Saturday at a time and place to be determined.
At right: Chris Parks fights off a Westmont player.
Palmyra Soccer Hitting The Road For State Playoffs
By MIKE GIVLER
Sports Editor – Lebanon Daily News
Posted: 11/08/2009 09:28:58 PM EST
Pack your bags, Palmyra soccer team, you're headed for a long trip Tuesday. And there may be more where that came from.
The Cougars found out Sunday that they will open their Class AA PIAA state playoffs against Westmont Hilltop, a game that will be played at Hollidaysburg High School on Tuesday, beginning at 6 p.m.
Palmyra is one of only two third-place teams in the 16-team Class AA state bracket, and because of its low seeding it is forced to play its way through the western half of the bracket in order to reach the state final. It also means if the Cougars continue to win, they would have to play three games west of the Susquehanna River before eventually meeting a team from the eastern half of the state in the PIAA finals.
The good news? The state championship game will be played in Palmyra's backyard at Hersheypark Stadium on Nov. 21.
So, why is Palmyra relegated to the western half of the state tournament?
Because District Three is one of the largest districts in the PIAA, it qualifies three teams for the state soccer playoffs. District Seven also puts its top three teams into states, but smaller Districts Six and Nine send just one each, making for an uneven amount of teams to fill out the western half of the bracket.
The answer is to put the District Three's last qualifier - the third-place team - into the western half of the bracket. That team this year is Palmyra.
Recent history, however, is on the Cougars' side. Last year, the third-place team from District Three that had to go through the western half of the state was Susquehannock, a team the Cougars eliminated from play Saturday with a 1-0 victory in the District Three third-place game.
Last year, Susquehannock ended up winning all three of its games against western teams - two games that were played at Hollidaysburg High School - en route to beating Pottsgrove for the state championship. This gives Palmyra coach Craig Tyrrell and his team plenty of optimism.
"We look at it as it's a new life and a new tournament," Tyrrell said. "Hopefully two weeks from now we'll be in the same position they (Susquehannock) were in."
And with a game in Hershey for the state title as their reward, the Cougars have plenty to play for.
"It's kind of encouraging," Tyrrell said. "If we win three games, we get to play here in front of our fans."
Westmont Hilltop, the District Six champs from the Johnstown area, enters the game with a sparkling 20-1 record, with its only loss coming against Class A Richland. The Hilltoppers have won their last 13 games.
Meanwhile, Palmyra is 23-1, having been victorious in its first 22 games before losing to Tulpehocken in the district semifinals last week.
Neither team has a short trip to Altoona-area Hollidaysburg High School for their first-round state playoff game Tuesday. Westmont is about an hour's drive from Hollidaysburg, while Palmyra will be on the road for roughly two and half hours for the 150-mile trek.
But no matter, the Cougars are willing to face anyone, anywhere this time of year.
"The attitude for us has been we're just happy we're in it," Tyrrell said. "It doesn't matter where we go, we're just happy to be in it."
Palmyra Soccer Team Keeps Season Alive
By JERRY REIGEL
For the Daily News
Posted: 11/07/2009 11:33:37 PM EST
MANCHESTER - Palmyra's hopes for its second PIAA soccer championship in the last three years were kept alive Saturday night with a gritty 1-0 victory over Susquehannock in the District Three Class AA third-place game at Northeastern High School.
The No. 1 seeded Cougars (23-1) were undefeated before losing to Tulpehocken in the district semifinals Wednesday, while the York County champs were seeded No. 6 at 17-4-1 and lost to Fleetwood in the same round of districts.
Neither team was willing to see its season end, resulting in hard-fought, end-to-end action, hard tackles all over the field and near misses at both ends. The Cougars were finally able to break through in the 67th minute behind the play of seldom-used sophomore forward Bret Haldeman.
A JV player most of the season, Haldeman ran on to a Brett Jankouskas pass in the Susquehannock penalty area and was taken down, resulting in a penalty kick. Jankouskas coolly converted the spot kick with 27:36 left in the game for his 25th goal of the season.
The Cougar defense did the rest, keeping Susquehannock off the board with goalie Josh Lineaweaver making seven saves.
As for the state tournament, the bad news is Palmyra will now have to travel as the third-place team from District Three to the western half of the state. The Cougars will take on Westmont Hilltop, the District Six champ, Tuesday at a site and time to be announced.
But that's no matter to the Cougars, who refused to give up their dream of another state title.
"It's a relief," Jankouskas said of the pending playoff matchup on the road. "We didn't want our season to end. We got the one bad game out of the way. Now we're ready to start a new winning streak."
Palmyra coach Craig Tyrrell shuffled his lineup masterfully, eking out every minute he could from midfield leader Kyle Schneider, who suffered a right hamstring injury in the loss to Tulpehocken.
When Michael Thompson, a reliable player on the flank with speed, complained of a leg injury, Tyrrell turned to Haldeman.
"Kyle showed a lot of courage tonight," said Tyrrell. "He wasn't 100 percent, but he's a tough kid. He wasn't about to sit and watch his teammates play this game without him.
"And Haldeman's been playing well for the JVs. He played in a few Mid-Penn games. We needed him to open up the field. He's a good server of the ball with some quickness. When Thompson went down, we needed him to open the field for us."
Haldeman also took a few Palmyra corner kicks, one of which nearly resulted in a goal. His in-swinger with 29:50 left to play was headed on goal by Dustin Stuck. The header beat Susquehannock goalie Tim Boyer just inside the far post before being headed away by defender Colton Ayres.
But unfortunately for Ayres, Haldeman's break down the left wing went behind him, resulting in Haldeman being fouled in the box.
"Brett (Jankouskas) made the play," said Haldeman, who scored two goals during the season. "He played the ball over their defense, and I just ran onto it. When I got inside the penalty area, their goalie came out and the defender behind me took my legs out."
Susquehannock coach Willy Whitty said he had no problem with the call.
"Unfortunately, we put ourselves in that position by not finishing our own chances," he said. "Palmyra's a good team, probably one of the top two or three quickest teams we faced all year.
"But we had our chances and didn't put them away. If we finish, we're not in that situation of letting the refs make a game-deciding call."
Susquehannock's best chance came with 24 minutes left in the half when leading scorer James Spearman (17 goals) found himself alone in front of the Palmyra goal.
Lineaweaver was off his line and out of position when Spearman was bothered just enough to lift his shot over the unprotected goal.
Thompson also had two near-misses, one that bounced off the post, while Jankouskas had one of his patented 30-yard free kicks saved by Boyer at the last instant.
Schneider got through alone in the final 15 minutes thanks to another Jankouskas pass, but his shot sailed just wide of the far post on the right.
"It was a good win," said Tyrrell. "Both teams played hard. We didn't know really what to expect from them. We don't scout who we play. We just concentrate on fine-tuning what we do, and if we play our game, we're confident we will win."
Susquehannock was awarded a free kick from 25 yards in the final minutes, but B.J. Johnson deflected Spearman's hard shot out of bounds with his head. On the ensuing corner kick, Jankouskas eventually headed the ball away as time expired.
At right: Bret Haldeman moves on the Warriors defender.
Palmyra Soccer Unbeaten No More
By PAT HUGGINS
Staff Writer, Lebanon Daily News
Posted: 11/04/2009 10:25:00 PM EST
LANDISVILLE - It was inevitable that it would end at some point.
But the way the Palmyra boys' soccer team had stubbornly turned back challenger after challenger throughout this remarkable season, it never seemed like it would.
It did, though. And at a most inopportune time.
The previously unbeaten Cougars' 22-game win streak came screeching to a halt Wednesday night in the semifinal round of the District Three Class AA playoffs via a fairly stunning 1-0 loss to Tulpehocken.
On the strength of Cody Hess' goal off a beautiful setup from Francisco Aparicio with 7:21 to play, Tulpehocken became the first team to put a dent in Palmyra's seemingly impenetrable armor, ending the defending champs' hopes of a repeat on the pitch at Hempfield High School.
The Cougars' first setback since last November in the state playoffs drops them into Saturday's third-place game opposite Susquehannock, which fell 2-0 to Fleetwood in Wednesday's other semifinal, and suddenly puts their once-spotless season in jeopardy of concluding well before anyone expected.
Since only three Class AA teams move on to the state playoffs, Palmyra will be literally fighting to keep its season alive Saturday against the reigning Class AA state champion Warriors. The matchup is set for 5 p.m. at Northeastern High School.
In a word: Wow.
"It is disappointing, but that's (only) one part of the goals we had set for us," Palmyra coach Craig Tyrrell said of the loss. "Unfortunately, we missed this one, but we still have a chance to go on and do a few more things. Once they get on the bus and relax and start listening to the music they'll realize they have another game to play."
But not the game they had hoped to be playing in Saturday. Tulpehocken, now 20-2 and definitely no fluke, saw to that with aggressive, pressure defense that disrupted Palmyra's normally precise possession style of play.
The Cougars had some chances, including a couple of early shots from Zach Lee, and a rocket off the right foot of star striker Brett Jankouskas that Tulpy keeper Andrew Fisher collected in the breadbasket with 22 minutes to go. But Palmyra never could find its best form against the feisty Berks County reps.
"They had a game plan, and they did it well," Tyrrell said of Tulpehocken. "They pressured the ball. They have some good players and they did some good things. They wanted the game more, obviously. Maybe they didn't want it more, but they wanted to beat us, and to their credit they did."
"We knew they were gonna knock it around, they knock it around real well," said Tulpehocken coach Tim Frantz. "We just wanted to pressure them and force them to go back as much as we could. And offensively, look to put pressure on their backs."
The Trojans actually didn't put a whole lot of pressure on Palmyra's defense throughout the contest. That is, until Aparicio shook loose on the left side in 73rd minute, raced into the box and sent a perfect cross to a streaking Hess, who buried it into the back of the net for his 38th and biggest goal of the season.
"He got around the corner, made a couple moves and found Cody," Frantz said of the score. "It was a sweet goal."
Palmyra did its best to counterattack following Hess's goal, but despite putting a fair amount of pressure on over the final seven minutes, could not draw even.
The Cougars' efforts to do so were certainly not helped by the hamstring injury that sidelined senior midfielder and field general Kyle Schneider for the entire second half.
Schneider's status for Saturday's game appears to be very much up in the air, and his absence last night had an undeniable impact on the Cougars' play.
"He plays a huge role. He pretty much controls a lot of the game," Tyrrell said of Schneider. "But when one guy's out, the other guys have to step up. We just didn't possess the ball."
Palmyra was coming off an emotional quarterfinal victory over Northern on Saturday that was decided in high-tension fashion by penalty kicks, but Tyrrell dismissed the notion of any emotional hangover.
"No, I don't think so," said Tyrrell. "We took our time and prepared well. We just didn't execute as well as we would have hoped."
Palmyra's Fall Sports Success Unmatched In State
November 04, 2009, 9:33AM
The Cougars are doing it again.
Both the Palmyra boys soccer and field hockey teams are putting themselves in the mix to be the best in District 3 and the state. If that seems familiar, there is a reason.
Both Cougar squads were in the state finals in 2007, when the soccer team defeated Mars 2-0 in the PIAA Class AA championship game, and the field hockey team lost to Mifflinburg 2-1 in overtime.
Not only that, but Palmyra has a chance to be the only school in Pennsylvania, regardless of classification, to put both its boys soccer team and field hockey team in the state tournament for each of the last three years.
All that would take is for the boys soccer team to finish in the top three of District 3, by reaching the finals or winning the third place game.
Palmyra’s soccer team is unbeaten in 22 games this year, heading into Wednesday night’s semifinal against Tulpehocken. Brett Jankouskas has 19 goals for the Cougars, who also have five other players with at least five goals: Kyle Schneider with eight, Jeremy Benner with seven, and Zach Krikorian, Jamel Manning and Tommy Miller with five.
For the orange and white field hockey team, which had already clinched a state spot before a 2-1 loss to Donegal in Tuesday’s District 3 semifinals, Katlyn Soucy has 19 goals this season. Stefani Day has 11 goals and Devyn Davis has 10.
But in addition to having post-season success and explosive offensive players, the two teams have another similarity. Both programs have had coaching changes in the middle of this three-year stretch of winning, and it does not appear to have affected them.
When Palmyra won the soccer state title two years ago, it was the last game for Jerry Hoffsmith. But Craig Tyrrell stepped in and has posted a 36-6-2 record with the Cougars, including winning the District 3-AA title last season.
Wendy Reichenbach coached the field hockey team from 2000 to 2008, guiding the Cougars to a state title in 2005 and the finals appearance in 2007.
Kristi Harshman, who played for Reichenbach, took over as head coach this season. She has Palmyra at 19-3-1 entering Saturday’s third-place game against Lancaster Mennonite.
Harshman said that the key for the field hockey team’s success through recent years ties into both consistent play in the offseason and excelling on defense.
“It’s definitely in the teamwork on the field,” Harshman said. “So many of our players play together year round. Also, our defensive unit. [Goalie] Kara [Bombgardner] hardly faces any shots because of her teammates.”
The state tournaments for both boys soccer and field hockey begin on Tuesday, Nov. 10th.
Unbeaten Palmyra Soccer Team Survives on Penalty Kicks
Posted: 10/31/2009 11:34:41 PM EDT - GametimePA.com
HERSHEY - For the Palmyra boys' soccer team, the beat goes on, but not without a major scare.
Palmyra and Northern York played 80 minutes of regulation and 30 minutes of sudden-death overtime in the District Three Class AA quarterfinals Saturday night at Hersheypark Stadium to a 1-1 draw, forcing the game to penalty kicks.
This after the unbeaten and top-seeded Cougars outshot Northern 23-3 with six corner kicks to Northern's none. The only player saving Northern all night was senior goalkeeper Ramon Lobo, who recorded 10 saves, at least three of which were acrobatic in nature.
When it came to PKs, however, Palmyra goalkeeper Josh Lineaweaver stole the show.
Northern's first shooter, Drew Frey, pushed his shot wide right, giving Palmyra its first big break of the game. Then Brett Jankoukas nailed his PK in the lower left corner to give Palmyra a 1-0 edge.
After Northern's Kyle Hejmanowski hit his PK to tie the score, Reed Kreider and Tommy Miller followed with consecutive tallies for the Cougars, setting the stage for Lineaweaver's heroics.
On Northern's third kick, Lineaweaver dove far to his left to save the shot of Nate Reinhart. Then, with Northern facing elimination, Lineaweaver caught the shot of Isaac Kawate to end the marathon.
With the win, Palmyra moved to 22-0 and faces Tulpehocken in Wednesday's semifinals at Hempfield High School, beginning at 5:30 p.m. Tulpehocken (19-2) defeated East Pennsboro 2-0 after ending Elco's season Wednesday with a 5-0 win.
Northern finished the season at 15-4-1.
Palmyra Coach Craig Tyrrell was obviously happy with the way his team responded against Northern.
"We showed the heart of a champion," he said. "They scored the early goal, then sat back and withstood our pressure. Their goalie was outstanding.
"But our guys never quit. They really wanted it. They were confident we could win. In the huddle, I didn't have to say a word. They said everything."
Northern got a first-half goal from Danny DiPrima to go up 1-0 at half. Content to sit back against the wind and withstand the second-half pressure of Palmyra, Lobo almost made the goal stand up. Until Palmyra's Zach Lee tied the score at 1-1 with 6:47 left in regulation.
Kreider started the play with a long free kick from the left flank. Lobo came off his line but came up empty. Chris Parks crossed it back into the middle, where Lee was able to slot it home.
Tyrrell said Jankoukas and Lineaweaver were both bothered with flu-like symptoms and Luke Brandt, another regular, missed the second half after taking a hard foul in the first half.
Senior midfielder Kyle Schneider kept rallying the Cougars and nearly pulled off a miracle finish in the second overtime with a 30-yard shot that kissed off the crossbar in the final minute.
Kreider and B.J. Johnson were solid in the back for Palmyra, while Jamell Manning came off the bench in the second half to help put the pressure on the Northern defense - and ultimately Lobo.
At Right: Josh Linaweaver with one of his two PK stops.
Poise gives Palmyra edge
BY JOHN TUSCANO jtuscano@patriot-news.com
Palmyra's pristine, unblemished record accurately reflects the minimal amount of adversity it has faced this season.
In fact, the Mid-Penn champion Cougars haven't faced a deficit in well over a month.
That all changed Saturday night at Hersheypark Stadium to the point where scrappy Northern was just under seven minutes away from pulling off the biggest shocker of the District 3 boys' soccer playoffs.
But against a team as skilled, talented and poised as Palmyra, a span of 6:47 is an awfully long time.
The Cougars were just a little better late in regulation and overtime and much more poised in penalty kicks as they survived a 1-1, 3-1 scare Saturday in the District 3-AA quarterfinals.
The heart-thumping win sends the Cougars (22-0) into Wednesday's 3-AA semifinals against Tulpehocken, a 2-0 winner over East Pennsboro. Game time is set for 5:30 p.m. at Hempfield High School.
"I didn't have to say anything to them in the huddle [in overtime and before penalty kicks]," Palmyra coach Craig Tyrrell said.
"They knew what they had to do to get the job done."
Tyrrell's club blazed through PKs on goals from Brett Jankouskas, Reed Kreider and Tommy Miller, while keeper Josh Lineaweaver made two saves -- one on Nate Reinhardt when he dove to his left and another on Isaac Kawate. Drew Frey's leadoff attempt sailed wide of the goal.
"We were pretty confident with the guys we had taking the shots and the guys had a lot of confidence in me in goal," said Lineaweaver, who made one save for the Cougars in regulation and OT.
"It's a combination of a lot of things when you're in goal. I try to look at where the guys are setting up for their shots and sometimes I have to guess right."
Lineaweaver nearly didn't get the chance to show his PK prowess as Northern packed in their defenders throughout the last 20 minutes of regulation in hopes of protecting its precious 1-0 lead.
Palmyra's pressure finally resulted in the equalizer when Zach Lee volleyed home a loose ball in the box to make it 1-1 with only 6:47 to play.
The goal was set up by Reed Kreider's long restart from the left side of the field.
It capped a Palmyra second-half flurry that saw the Cougars own a whopping 14-0 advantage in shots -- 23-3 for the game.
"Once we were down in the game, we knew we had to keep fighting," said Lineaweaver, who surrendered his first goal since Oct. 3 against Northern Lebanon.
"I thought we responded well and we knew had to work that much harder."
The Polar Bears (15-4-1), seeded eighth in this 3-AA tournament, stunned the sparse crowd when Danny DiPrima snapped a header past Lineaweaver with 5:56 left in the first half.
David Steele's cross from the right wing set up the score.
It was the first time since a Sept. 19 game against Elco that Palmyra had trailed.
Northern keeper Ramon Lobo played a terrific game between the posts and made seven saves to keep the upset bid in play.
Blackjack! Palmyra Soccer Team 21-0 After District Win
By PAT HUGGINS
Staff Writer
Posted: 10/29/2009 12:05:40 AM EDT
HERSHEY - A dynamic, prolific offense. Rock solid, almost impenetrable defense. Superb on-field leadership and a calm, steady, but firm hand from the head coach.
If the Palmyra boys' soccer team has any weaknesses or vulnerabilities at this point, they're not visible to the naked eye.
The Cougar juggernaut continued to steamroll everything in its path Wednesday evening, improving to 21-0 with a thorough 5-1 defeat of game but overmatched Trinity in a District Three Class AA first-round matchup under the lights at Hershey High School.
Led by two goals apiece from reserve junior midfielder Zack Krikorian and senior go-to guy Brett Jankouskas and a typically smothering defensive effort spearheaded by keeper Josh Lineaweaver's four saves, defending Class AA champ Palmyra took firm control of the contest midway through the first half and didn't let it go until it had secured a spot in Saturday's quarterfinal round opposite the winner of tonight's Northern-West York first-rounder. That matchup was postponed Wednesday due to wet field conditions.
Opening-round upsets, of course, can happen, but only to the vulnerable.
"It was just, 'Come out and play and don't take anything lightly,'" said Palmyra coach Craig Tyrrell, whose veteran squad was in action for the first time since Saturday's double OT win over Central Dauphin in the Mid-Penn championship game. "I'm pretty much satisfied. I thought they handled themselves well. They've pretty much seen all of it before.
It's just, take our time and do what we do best."
Palmyra controlled the action throughout but misfired on a few early chances, leaving the contest scoreless for the first 20 minutes. But all that changed with 19:01 left in the half, when a net-crashing Krikorian knocked in the rebound of a Zach Lee shot that was initially denied by Shamrocks keeper Jon Malpezzi.
Michael Thompson had sent in the initial cross from the right side to Lee, who was stoned by Malpezzi, setting the stage for Krikorian to clean up the scraps and give Palmyra the lead for good.
"It's good for him," said Tyrrell, with a smile, of Krikorian's first goal. "Follow the shot, follow the shot. We work on that stuff in practice. The goalkeeper made a hell of a save, and he (Krikorian) just fell on the ball."
Krikorian then upped the Cougar lead to 2-0 with 6:17 left in the half, when he deflected a clearing attempt by Trinity in the box to himself and ripped it past Malpezzi for the score.
From there, the outcome was inevitable, but the Cougars kept the heat on, going up 3-0 with 13:08 gone in the second half when Lee set up Jankouskas for his first goal. Jankouskas then did all the work on Palmyra's fourth goal, bending in a free kick from about 20 yards out for a 4-0 lead with 13:57 to play.
Palmyra then closed out its scoring column with 10:30 to go when Tommy Miller got into the act by finishing off a dead-on feed from Jankouskas.
The Cougars narrowly missed adding close to a half dozen more goals to the easy win, overshadowing yet another stellar effort from the defensive unit of keeper Lineaweaver and backs Reed Kreider, Dustin Stuck, Brian "B.J." Johnson and Luke Brandt.
"The understanding's there. They understand each other well," Tyrrell said of the defense, "especially with (Lineaweaver) in the back. He talks it up. He kinda marshals everything. Even the guys off the bench, they understand each other."
Despite another shut-down effort, the Cougars unhappily yielded their first goal in nearly a month when Trinity midfielder Austin Gullo headed in a corner kick with 5:35 left. Prior to that score, the last goal allowed came from Northern Lebanon star Ryan Comiskey in a 3-1 Palmyra win on Oct. 3, a span of seven games and nearly 1,000 minutes of game action.
"They were disappointed that they gave that up," said Tyrrell. "I think they counted 994 minutes without a goal. They were trying to hit the thousand mark, but that's the game sometimes."
But, Tyrrell noted, the Cougars will leave everything that happened Wednesday night - good and bad - in the past.
"The games that happened last week don't even exist for us," said Tyrrell. "It's just tonight and that's it. Now it's Saturday, whoever it is. We don't really care, we just prepare for it."
Top Right: Palmyra s Zack Krikorian celebrates one of his two goals that helped the Cougars knock off Trinity. (LEBANON DAILY NEWS JIM ZENGERLE)
Below is a video highlight from News 8
Palmyra Downs Trinity 5-1 in District 3-AA Soccer
October 28, 2009, 9:59PM
Palmyra backed up its No. 1 seeding in the District 3-AA boys soccer tournament with a 5-1 win over Trinity in the round of 16 Wednesday night at Hershey High School.
The Cougars will play in Saturday’s quarterfinals against the winner of the Northern-West York contest, which was postponed to Thursday. Sites and times for the quarterfinals are to be announced.
Zack Krikorian scored two goals for Palmyra (21-0) in the first half, both off of richocets in the box.
“Follow the ball, follow the shot,” Palmyra head coach Craig Tyrrell said. “It’s what we do in practice.”
First, Krikorian scored off of a rebound with 19:01 remaining in the first period. The initial shot was by Zach Lee after a crossing pass from Mike Thompson.
Then at the 6:22 mark, Krikorian got in the way of a clearing attempt by one of Trinity’s defenders. He the ball rolled toward the Shamrock’s goal, and Krikorian got to it first and put it in the lower left corner of the goal.
Meanwhile, Trinity (12-7-1) did not generate a shot in the first 35 minutes.
“They’re just so quick and fast, they just put on a clinic,” Trinity head coach Alan Blackledge said. “We can’t match that speed all over the field.”
In the second half, Brett Jankouskas scored twice to put the Cougars up 4-0.
Lee made a pass through the box from left to right, where Jankouskas took it and put it in with 26:52 remaining in the game.
Later, the Cougars were awarded a direct kick from 22 yards out. Jankouskas curved it into the top left corner of the goal cage with 13:57 to play.
Jankouskas provided the assist on Palmyra’s last goal, a shot from the left side by Tommy Miller.
Although the Cougars had five goals and 18 shots, Tyrrell said he did not have to focus them on offensive production.
“I know that they’re hungry enough that they want to score,” Tyrrell said.
Trinity’s lone goal was a by Austin Gullo with 5:35 left in the contest. Derek Pawlush assisted.
Josh Lineaweaver made four saves for Palmyra.
Jon Malpezzi stopped five shots for Trinity. Ian Kopcho came in late in the game and made one save.
Two Trinity defenders made saves on Jankouskas’ shots behind Malpezzi. John Panas got in the way of a 20-yard free kick in the first half, and Ryan Sweeney deflected a shot in the box in the second half.
Each team had two corners.
GO COUGARS!!
Jankouskas tagged Mid-Penn Conference Player of the Year
Complete Mid-Penn All Star List Click Here
October 29, 2009, 1:10AM
Senior striker Brett Jankouskas, whose prolific play up front has sparked Palmyra to 21 consecutive victories, was named the Mid-Penn Conference's player of the year at Tuesday night's meeting of the sprawling circuit's boys' soccer coaches.
Jankouskas, listed on all 27 ballots cast, also landed one of the Mid-Penn's four all-state nods. The others went to Red Land midfielder Blake Succa, hard-working striker Tom Palmer of Hershey and Central Dauphin forward/midfielder Eric McGinnis.
Second-year skipper Craig Tyrrell, who piloted Palmyra (21-0-0) to its second Keystone Division championship in three seasons, was named the Mid-Penn's coach of the year. Tyrrell's club -- the reigning District 3-AA champions -- opened the District 3-AA playoffs Wednesday night by trouncing Trinity 5-1 at Hershey High School. Jankouskas, who has posted 53 points (23 goals, 7 assists), scored two second-half goals for the Cougars.
Also named to the first team were Cougar defender Reed Kreider, goal keeper Josh Lineaweaver and midfielder Kyle Schneider. Defender Brian (BJ) Johnson was named to the second team.
Congratulations!!
Jankouskas, Palmyra take Mid-Penn Soccer Title
By PAT HUGGINS
Staff Writer
Lebanon Daily News |
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| HARRISBURG - Palmyra likes its Mid-Penn Conference championships 1-0 in double overtime, thank you very much.
Ah, those crazy kids. All about the drama.
The Palmyra boys' soccer team continued a remarkable season and capped an equally remarkable week for Cougar athletics Saturday night, capturing its first Mid-Penn crown with a thrilling 1-0 double OT triumph over Central Dauphin on the Rams' home turf of Landis Field.
Still unbeaten at 20-0 in this charmed 2009 season, the Cougars forced Palmyra Area High School to clear some extra space in its trophy area with the triumph, following up the Mid-Penn crown the field hockey team snared earlier in the week with its own well-earned title, which came courtesy of money man Brett Jankouskas' game-winning goal in the 105th minute.
The symmetry of the twin achievements was not lost on Jankouskas, who cashed in the final scoring chance with the help of Zach Lee's hustling defensive play/assist. Kinda like Devyn Davis did Wednesday night when she capitalized on a great defensive play and pass by Anna Scipioni to give the field hockey team a 1-0 double OT victory over Lower Dauphin and its first Mid-Penn crown.
Don't worry, Palmyra, your teams aren't trying to outdo each other. But they do seem to be pushing each other to new heights.
"It's not really a rivalry. We're working together almost," said Jankouskas. "We go to see each other's games. It's good stuff."
"It means a lot," he added, of the win. "CD's definitely the best team we've played so far. They're very good, solid everywhere. It means a lot to finally get the Mid-Penn championship because Palmyra's never gotten it before except for field hockey (this week). It just feels good because the last time we were in it (two years ago) we got blown out."
There was plenty of good stuff that took place on the Landis Field pitch Saturday, and it came in abundance from both teams.
CD (15-5) enjoyed the better of the play in the first half, outshooting the Cougars 6-2 and putting a ton of pressure on late in the first half that strong play in goal from Josh Lineaweaver (8 saves) helped Palmyra survive.
In turn, Palmyra tipped the scales in its favor early in the second half, with Jankouskas narrowly misfiring on a pair of early chances, including an acrobatic bicycle kick try that skirted wide right.
And on and on it went, back and forth through 80 minutes of hotly contested regulation play, the first 15-minute extra session and 9:18 of the second OT before Lee blocked a Rams clearing attempt to an anticipating Jankouskas, who dribbled toward the goal and uncorked a shot that whistled past CD keeper Jon Lutz and into the lower left corner of the cage for the win.
"I kinda had a feeling Zach was gonna block the clearance," said Jankouskas, "so I ran on it and he did just what I thought he was gonna do. If Zach didn't block that, it's no goal."
And when he did get the block and the ball caromed to Jankouskas, Lee knew exactly what would come next. And Palmyra coach Craig Tyrell wasn't exactly shocked, either.
"I just got a toe on it and it went perfectly to Brett," said Lee, of a ball that was initially played in by Michael Thompson before the CD defender's ill-fated clearing attempt.
And when Jankouskas gets the ball in space?
"It's always over," said Lee, grinning.
"That's his job," Tyrell said, with a chuckle, of Jankouskas. "He's a striker, so that's his job. The ball movement to get it there was beautiful, and he does what he does best, which is finish."
Because he did, the Cougars are now halfway to a scholastic soccer Grand Slam of sorts. Or more accurately, two-fourths of the way there.
Mid-Penn Keystone Division title? Check. Overall conference title? Got it.
That leaves the District Three Class AA title the Cougars will begin defending Wednesday and, if all goes well there, another run at a state title to go with the PIAA championship Palmyra brought home in 2007.
That's a lot to assume, but if the Cougars are able to add those two crowns by mid-November, they will have Central Dauphin to thank for it.
"We're two for four right now in our team goals," said Jankouskas. "They're a great team. I'm really glad we played a team like that, even if we would have lost just because we got that experience. It's humbling when a team can play with you the whole game, and at points dominate you. I think it's a very good test."
"They were a great team, they hustled," said Lee, "but we just came out on top. Both teams played their hearts out." |
GO COUGARS!!
CBS21 Video Highlights are below
Cougars' Jankouskas decides OT thriller
Sunday, October 25, 2009
BY MICHAEL BULLOCK mbullock@patriot-news.com Some hunch, huh?
Sensing one of his teammates was going to get in the way of a clearance just outside Central Dauphin's penalty area, Brett Jankouskas tried to read all of the possible angles so he could locate some space and be ready to receive the ball.
And once that deflected ball skidded his way, the rest was predictable.
Burying a blast from a step inside the box with 5:42 to go in overtime, Jankouskas' finish rocketed Palmyra to a 1-0 victory over CD in the finals of the Mid-Penn's fourth boys' soccer tournament Saturday night at breezy Landis Field.
Josh Lineaweaver registered five saves in goal for Palmyra (20-0-0), which pitched its sixth consecutive shutout and ninth in 10 games. The Cougars, the top seed in the District 3-AA playoffs, are the first Keystone Division champ to claim a Mid-Penn crown.
"Just feels good, because the last time we got blown out when we were in the championship [game]," said Jankouskas, referring to Palmyra's 6-0 loss to Red Land at Landis in the 2007 final.
"Feels nice."
Jon Lutz booked three stops for CD (15-5-0).
"I was proud of our effort," said Rams coach Gregg Davis, whose Commonwealth Division champs will open District 3-AAA play as the No. 3 seed. "I thought we did very well. That's the best we played in a long time. We played as a team, we fought for each other, we played good soccer at times.
"We didn't finish a couple of chances that we had and then we gave a great goal scorer a chance to score ... and he scored."
Scoreless well into overtime, Saturday's epic finally drew to a dramatic close when the Rams attempted to pry the ball out of their defensive third. Zach Lee had other thoughts, planting himself in front of the ball and deflecting it to his right, where the opportunistic Jankouskas readied.
Poised and with plenty of room to lock and load up his lethal right leg -- the senior striker spent most of the night trying to fend off CD's pesky Josh Kingston -- Jankouskas let loose. One, maybe two heartbeats later, the ball whistled past a flailing Lutz for the game-winner.
As the ecstatic Cougars celebrated, CD's disappointed Rams lay prone on the turf.
"I kind of had a feeling Zach Lee was going to block the clearance, so I ran on," Jankouskas said of the game-winning sequence. "He did just what I thought he was going to do, so I picked it up, took like a touch or something and just shot it. ... If Zach didn't block that, it's no goal."
"They play well together," said Palmyra coach Craig Tyrrell, whose club has conceded just one goal in its last 889-plus minutes. "They understand each other well."
Well, that understanding capped a terrific scrap that featured plenty of effort, end-to-end action for much of the fray's 104-plus minutes and some intriguing one-on-one encounters. Hard-earned tackles? Oh, yeah. Clutch saves? Lutz and Lineaweaver certainly added dandies to their highlight reels.
In addition to the Jankouskas-Kingston duel -- the Rams' Mike Jones pitched in whenever his diminutive teammate needed help -- the one at the other end between CD's frenetic Eric McGinnis and Reed Kreider was just as compelling. No wonder everyone was spent afterwards.
This game, the best of the four finals played thus far, was that good.
"They might be the best team we play this whole season," Jankouskas said of the reigning 3-AA champs' final test before districts. "I'm really glad we played a team like that, even if we would have lost, just because we would have gotten that experience.
"It's humbling when a team can play with you the whole game and, at points, dominate you. It was a very good test."
One the Cougars passed.
Cougars Roll Into Finals
By DAN SERNOFFSKY
Staff Writer - LD News, Game TimePA.com
Posted: 10/22/2009 11:43:35 PM EDT
HERSHEY - For the first 40 minutes, it was competitive.
Then in the space of six minutes early in the second half, it was suddenly over.
Zach Lee scored in the 44th minute to give the Palmyra Cougars a 2-0 lead over the East Pennsboro Panthers. Six minutes later, Tommy Miller scored, and from that point on, it was all over but the shouting.
When the shouting began, the Cougars had rolled to a 4-0 victory over the Panthers in their Mid-Penn Conference semifinal showdown at Milton Hershey's Henry Hershey Field Thursday night.
With the win, the Cougars, now 19-0, advance to the conference championship game against Central Dauphin Saturday. The Rams earned their spot in the title game when Lucas Gross scored 53 minutes into the second overtime, giving them a 1-0 victory over Camp Hill in the other semifinal game.
Saturday's game is scheduled for 6 p.m. at Central Dauphin's Landis Field.
"They came out pressuring us hard and fast," said Palmyra coach Craig Tyrell, "but that made it easier for us to play the ball."
The East Pennsboro pressure, however, threatened only Palmyra's ball control game. The Panthers essentially packed the back in an effort to deny the Cougars time and space in the offensive zone, and while the strategy was effective to a degree, it forced them to rely on playing long balls in an effort to generate offense. The offense was never generated.
"We've seen that before," Tyrell said, "teams packing in six or seven guys."
What may have hurt the Cougars in the first half more than the East Pennsboro defensive mindset was their tendancy to get too "cute" with the ball. Palmyra effectively maintained its shape throughout the half, and was comfortably able to switch fields, but often held the ball too long, or made one-too-many touches.
"To their credit, they came out fast," Tyrell said, "but that (getting 'cute') was hurting us."
That also resulted in the one major change Tyrell made in the first half, shifting Brett Jankouskas from the middle to the wing. That move not only took some of the pressure off the middle, it freed Jankouskas, and with 16 minutes left in the half, he capitalized.
Taking a feed from Luke Brandt, Jankouskas wheeled to get position on Justin Duttry, then launched his shot, a 17-yard blast from the left side that beat East Pennsboro keeper Cody Kramer to the far post.
Jankouskas then set up Lee for the game's second goal, and from that point on, the Panthers were vainly playing catch-up.
"That second goal, it was well put together," said Tyrell, "and I think that changed the game."
The goal was set up in part by Tyrell's halftime reminder to his team to simply focus on playing well.
"We just reminded them of what they were good at," Tyrell said. "Our habit is to attack, and if they're gonna beat us, they're gonna have to beat us that way."
The Cougars completely put the game out of reach when Miller scored on a 30-yard blast from right sideline that carried over Kramer and into the net. With just under 14 minutes left, Tyrell began making wholesale substitutions, including replacing starting keeper Josh Lineaweaver with Nate McClellan. Bret Haldeman closed out the scoring with five and a half minutes left with a wide-open shot from the left side off a cross from Dan Rusling.
Lineaweaver had four saves, McClellan none in the shutout. The first three shots Lineaweaver faced, all in the first half, were easily handled long-range blasts by the Panthers. His lone second half save came at the corner of the post..
GO COUGARS!!
At right, BJ Johnson is marking an East Pennsboro player while Chris Parks looks on
A CBS21 video highlight is below.
We would like to send out special thanks to all of our partners for their support of our team!!
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