Sunday, December 22, 2024
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Streaks stop Mounts


Denis Pasic scored two goals to lift the Blue Streaks to a 3-0 win over Ephrata in the quarterfinal match at Comet Field on Saturday night.

Willie Ransing accounted for the other goal for Township (14-3-1), which will meet Lancaster Mennonite in Tuesday’s semifinals, a 5 p.m. start at Warwick. Ephrata bowed out at 10-7-2.

Turning point: Down 2-0, Ephrata mounted a flurry early in the second half. But Nick Russo saw his shot catch the crossbar, and Streaks keeper Dylan Plank denied Aaron Cummings at close range. Pasic then headed home Jordan Noel’s corner kick at 14:16, making it 3-0.

Star of the game: Pasic is the obvious choice, but Ransing’s goal was a thing of beauty. He collected a pass from Ryan McDowell on the left wing, maneuvered around three defenders and beat keeper Jimmy Hickey at close range.

Key statistic: The Streaks had six of their eight corners in the second half, when they took control of the match.

Quotable: “We settled down in the second half, I thought,” Township coach Andrew Raudensky said. “Willie and Denis on the two goals in the first half, that was just great bits of 1-v-1 skill. They worked hard to get behind, then finished.”

“I thought we played one of our better games of the year and had quite a few opportunities,” Ephrata coach Rob Deininger said. “It wasn’t a bad night for us at all. Even though it was 3-0, I was pleased with our effort.”