Published: November 10, 2009 12:25 am      

PIAA Soccer Preview: Short-handed Indians face tall task tonight

Conemaugh Township won the District 5 Class A boys soccer championship with just

15 players.

In order to advance in the PIAA playoffs, which begin today, the Indians will have to do it with even fewer.

Coach Chris Miller’s Indians will have only 13 players – 11 starters plus two subs – when they play York Catholic at 5 p.m. at Berlin Brothersvalley High School. Senior Kyle Benson and senior Kyle Petak were injured in the district championship game and likely will miss the rest of the season.

“Losing those two guys really hurt us,” Miller said. “I told my guys at practice on Saturday ‘We won games with two guys as subs. We’ve done it with 13 players.’ We’re going to keep believing in what we’re doing.”

Miller said that he was able to coble together some information on the Internet about York Catholic, and a familiar picture emerged.

“A lot of their games seem like ours, one-goal games,” he said of the District 3 third-place finisher. “It probably means they have a good defense. They don’t have one main scorer, so they’re probably pretty balanced, like we are.”

Other than that, Miller hasn’t been able to get a good scouting report on his team’s opponent.

“It would be nice to be able to have the time to scout, but everyone’s playoffs are running consecutively,” he said. “ What we try to do is use the Internet. It’s no different than in districts. We didn’t see those teams all year and we didn’t get to scout them either.”

Miller is hoping that his team will get a boost from playing so close to home.

“I belive we’ll have a good fan base, not just from Conemaugh Township, but from around District 5. The Windber girls play after us, too. It’s a short drive (from Davidsville).”

Boys Class AA

Westmont Hilltop vs. Palmyra at Hollidaysburg, 6 p.m.: Steve Meehan got to see Palmyra, the District 3 third-place finisher, play on Saturday.

That was enough for the Westmont coach.

“They’re tough,” Meehan said. “They’re the toughest team we will see so far this season. Our kids will have to play their best to win.”

Meehan saw a lot of similarities between Palymra and his Hilltoppers (20-1).

“They have an excellent defense,” he said. “They’re very comfortable with the ball. They attack real well. They set up their attack real well, kind of like us. Their midfield has a lot of one-touch passes. They’re quick through the transition zone. Their strikers are real good finishers. They do remind me of our team.”

With so many similarities, it shouldn’t be surprising that Meehan is expecting a close contest.

“It will be a barnburner, no doubt about it,” he said.

Girls Class A

Richland vs. Loyalsock at Hollidaysburg, 4 p.m.: The Rams (18-1-2) are hoping to draw on last year’s PIAA experience when they take the field today.

“I think the fact that we played there last year is important,” Richland coach Nathan Gironda said. “Last year was the first time any of them had played at this level. We only have five players back from last year’s team, but some of them were there and know what to expect.”

What Gironda expects is a strong opponent, even though Loyalsock is the third-place finisher in District 4.

“Any team that comes out of District 4 can win a state title any year,” he said. “We know that, but we know that if we play well, we can win any of those games.”

Richland, was 10th in final regular-season rankings for Class AA while Loyalsock was fourth.

“I think my girls understand that they’re pretty good and that they can play with anybody on any given day,” Gironda said. “They’re going to make us earn it. We can play badly sometimes around here and win, but if we play badly there they will run us off the field.’

Windber vs. South Park at Berlin Brothersvalley,

5 p.m.: The Ramblers (16-4) face a tall task in the District 7 runner-up Eagles, who shared the state title a year ago.

Windber coach John Wozny is hoping that playing on Berlin’s grass surface will help level the playing field.

“I’m hoping that will play to our advantage,” Wozny said. “It’s almost a home field for us. I don’t know how many games (South Park has) played on turf. Hopefully, the grass will be better for us, and I know the girls will feel better being close to home.”

Wozny thinks his team is ready for the challenge.

“We’ve been working hard the last few days of practice, getting them ready, running some different sets to be prepared for whatever South Park brings,” Wozny said.

Bishop McCort vs. Springdale at Franklin Regional High School,

8 p.m.: Bishop McCort coach Joe Petak doesn’t know much about the team that the Crimson Crushers (16-2-2) will face tonight, and he’s just fine with that.

“It was either South Park or them,” Petak said. “On this side of the mountain, you don’t get to know teams that way.”

Bishop McCort finished second to Richland in District 6 while Springdale won the District 7 title.

“We’re ready,” Petak said. “We’re happy with our team right now. A 16-2-2 season? You can’t be disappointed.”