McIntyre sends Charleroi back to WPIAL boys soccer final
McMURRAY — Shedding the jersey after scoring a game-winning goal is nothing new in soccer, but doing so in a steady rainfall with the temperature just above freezing could be.
Charleroi senior Arlo McIntyre decided to ignore the cold and rain after burying a penalty kick to the bottom left of the cage past Seton LaSalle keeper Nick Cherry with 10:42 left in the first overtime that sent the Cougars to the WPIAL Class A boys soccer championship game for the second straight season with a 1-0 victory Monday night in the semifinals at Confluence Financial Partners Stadium on the campus of Peters Township Middle School.
McIntyre shed his jersey and ran towards the fence separating the track from the walkway to the stands to celebrate with the Charleroi supporters who made the trip. McIntyre still had the shirt off roughly 15 minutes after putting his team in Friday’s final at Highmark Stadium in Pittsburgh.
“The adrenaline is definitely pumping, but I am getting a little cold right now,” McIntyre said. “I had never taken my shirt off after scoring, but I’m not going to lie, I was thinking about it for the past 30 minutes that if I score, I am going to take my shirt off.
“My team had the faith in me to take it and we work on penalty kicks every day in practice. My brother, Eben, always told me to pick a place and go with it, and not to second guess yourself. He plays for Pitt in college. I want to play in college, but I am going to wait and get a few more looks before making a decision.”
The Cougars (19-0-0) meet a very familiar foe for the title in Section 2-A rival Bentworth (17-2-0). Kickoff is scheduled for 8 p.m.
The Bearcats had an exciting semifinal as sophomore Ryan Moessner scored the game winner in overtime for a 2-1 triumph over Burrell.
Charleroi won both matches in the regular season, but each were highly competitive. The Cougars won, 2-0, on Sept. 7 and 2-1 on Oct. 3.
“I think it is going to be a very well-played match,” Charleroi coach Jon Ducoli said. “Both sides know each other well, and just not from the high school side, but from the Cup side as well. You have neighboring schools going for it all Friday, and I think that shows how strong our section is.”
Regardless of who wins the title on Friday, it will be a first for both programs, and the third for a public school since Class A was introduced prior to the season in 2000. Riverside won in 2012 and Avonworth in 2018.
Charleroi entered Monday’s game second in goals score in Class A at 103 and had yielded nine, but the Rebels (15-3-1) led Class A in fewest goals allowed with six.
Cherry, who made nine saves, was instrumental in Seton LaSalle winning 14 games by shutout, but had the unfortunate task of attempting to stop McIntyre from 12 yards out after the Rebels were called for a hand ball in the penalty area.
“Nick is my friend and a very good goalie, and I knew their defense was pretty solid, so I expected us to win, but I knew it would be a tough one,” McIntrye said. “I want to give a shoutout to my defense for holding it down in this game and the whole season. I play defense on my Cup team, so I know how important it is.”
Nate Mazon earned the clean sheet.
“Nate is probably the most solid goalie I’ve seen in my entire career,” McIntyre said.
Seton LaSalle coach Nick Balzer wasn’t surprised the match went to a penalty-kick situation with the defense and goalkeeping that both teams possessed, but he didn’t expect it to be in the situation that occurred.
“Ever since we went past Springdale (in the quarterfinals), we’ve been training for PKs because we anticipated that this was going to be the game that it was,” Balzer said. “We figured it was going to be one magic moment or we were going to PKs. It’s a shame that it ended the way that it did, but that’s the game.
“It’s easier said than done, but we have to turn the page and get ready for Burrell. They lost in overtime, too, so both teams are reeling, but the WPIAL is set up to send three to states, and we have to focus on winning on Wednesday and getting in the tournament.”