Laurel Highlands vs. Uniontown III
Mustangs, Red Raiders to clash in boys soccer playoffs
Laurel Highlands and Uniontown traded victories this season, and the WPIAL soccer steering committee decided that a third match would be appropriate when it established the bracket for the WPIAL Class 3A playoffs in boys soccer on Wednesday afternoon.
The Mustangs will host the Red Raiders in the preliminary round of the WPIAL boys soccer playoffs in Class 3A on Oct. 22 at Mustang Field on the campus of Laurel Highlands High School. The match is set to begin at 7 p.m.
The winner will travel to face top-seeded Plum (16-0-1) on Oct. 24 at Plum in the first round. The kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m.
Laurel Highlands qualified for the postseason last year, but lost to Moon, 4-0, in the first round of the Class 3A playoffs.
Uniontown is back in the playoffs after a 30-year absence. The Red Raiders qualified in Class 4A during the 1996 season under Ed Yauger.
Uniontown defeated Laurel Highlands, 5-2, in the first meeting between the crosstown rivals on Sept. 15 at Bill Power Stadium. Senior Braylon Woods scored four goals and Ty Harvey had the fifth for the Red Raiders. Teammate Josh Paris had three assists and Noah Holland made 10 saves.
The rematch was much tighter, but the Mustangs were able to put two balls behind Holland for a 2-nil triumph. Mike Aubele scored less than four minutes into the match and Roman George added an insurance tally with 10 minutes remaining for the victory at Mustang Field on Oct. 6. Dan O’Neal earned the clean sheet for the home team.
Uniontown recovered from the setback to Laurel Highlands and rallied from a two-goal deficit in the second half to play Ringgold to a 2-2 draw on Oct. 13 at Bill Power Stadium.
Laurel Highlands and Uniontown finished play in Section 2-3A with identical records of 3-6-1. Both clubs defeated Albert Gallatin twice, each other once and played the Rams to a 2-2 tie for 10 points in the section.
The Mustangs enter the postseason with an overall record of 6-8-1, while the Red Raiders sport a mark of 6-7-1.
Laurel Highlands is coached by Alexander Guie and Uniontown is guided by Jamie Holland.
Mount Pleasant (17-1-1) earned the best seed among local teams, as the Vikings enter the Class 2A tournament as the fifth seed after winning Section 5-2A.
Mount Pleasant hosts South Park (6-4-7) on Oct. 26 at Mount Pleasant Stadium. Kickoff for the first-round match is scheduled for 7 p.m.
Belle Vernon (14-1-2) travels to Beaver (11-2-4) for its Class 2A first-round match on Oct. 26 at 7 p.m.
Southmoreland (7-6-2) will face West Mifflin (9-9-0) on the road on Oct. 22 in a preliminary-round match at 7 p.m. in Class 2A. The winner travels to No. 1 seed Avonworth (15-1-1) on Oct. 26 at 8 p.m.
The Vikings earned a 2-1 victory over Elizabeth Forward last year in the Class 2A WPIAL playoffs before they were ousted by Avonworth by a 4-0 score in the quarterfinals.
The Leopards were in Class 3A last season, and won a preliminary match over Ringgold, 2-1, at James Weir Stadium. Belle Vernon’s season came to an end in a 1-0 setback to Hampton in the first round.
The Scotties lost in the first round last year to top-seed South Park, 1-0, in the Class 2A playoffs.