Floodgates finally open for Burrell in playoff-opening win over Greensburg Central Catholic

By: Michael Love
Saturday, October 21, 2023 | 6:00 PM

Purchase Photo Options

The Burrell boys soccer team delivered numerous shots and scoring chances in last year’s WPIAL Class A first-round game against Serra Catholic at Buccaneer Stadium.

But the Eagles got the game’s only goal in what was a frustrating final contest for the Bucs in the 2022 season.

Burrell again found itself at home for the first round Saturday against Greensburg Central Catholic, and the game was taking on a similar form as the Bucs produced a lot of offense but were kept off the board into the second half by the Centurions defense and junior keeper Isaac House.

But junior Billy Kowalkowski broke the ice for Burrell with 21 minutes, 30 seconds left on the second-half clock, and the floodgates opened from there.

The third-seeded Bucs added four more goals — two each from seniors Cam Wagner and Hadyn Herbulock — and posted a 5-1 victory over the No. 14 seed.

“That first goal really opened things up and really settled us down,” Wagner said. “It showed us that we could score as many as we wanted. We were trying to keep calm and knew that we would eventually score if we just continued to play our game.”

Freshman Vinnie Guerrini and seniors Jayson Ireland and Taber Driscoll provided assists for Burrell, which finished with a 26-2 margin in total shots, including a 17-2 advantage in shots on goal.

Burrell, which improved to 13-3 on the season, moves into the quarterfinals Wednesday with matchup against No. 11 Trinity Christian at a site and time to be determined.

Trinity Christian upended No. 6 Serra Catholic, 1-0, Saturday afternoon. It will be the third meeting between Burrell and Trinity. The Bucs swept the section series, winning both in overtime.

“We’re excited to be moving on to the quarterfinals,” said Wagner, a captain along with Ireland.

GCC had moments of offensive pushes over the first 40 minutes, but Burrell owned a majority of possession in the Centurions’ half of the field and held an 8-0 shot advantage at halftime.

Five of the eight shots made it on goal as Wagner, Ireland, Driscoll, junior Will Doutt and others recorded dangerous chances.

The Bucs kept a furious pace to start the second half as Ireland, Herbulock, Kowalkowski, Wagner and juniors Calio Zanella and Luke Postupack fired off shots.

Kowalkowski’s goal, assisted by Guerrini, came on Burrell’s 17th shot of the game and ninth of the second half.

Wagner quickly made it 2-0 a minute and a half later off an assist from Ireland.

Herbulock headed in a rebound at 17:06, and Wagner converted a penalty kick at 16:21. In a span of 5 minutes, 9 seconds, Burrell had a 4-0 lead.

Guerrini almost made it 5-0 with 14 minutes left, but his shot deflected off the left goal post.

Herbulock did make it 5-0 on a free kick from the 18 with 2:13 on the clock.

“We felt that was coming,” Burrell coach Andrew Kariotis said. “They kept hammering away. It’s easy to get frustrated, but they didn’t. They just kept at it. Sometimes teams, when that happens, they can turn on each other. The guys kept doing what they needed to do. They kept up the pressure, got good chances, and they started going in. We controlled the game from start to finish. They kept it positive, and the goals came.”

GCC, the fourth-place team from Section 2, closes out its season at 7-11 overall.

The Centurions’ first shot of the game came with 7:40 left in regulation. Sophomore midfielder Grant Brewer got GCC on the board with 1:35 left.

“I felt we had a good game plan going in the first half and kept them off the board,” Centurions coach Ryan Kanner said. “We were playing extremely well and were really aggressive on the ball. We stuck to our guns and stuck to our shape. Things just really didn’t go our way in the second half, and it was an domino effect.

“Burrell is just a great team. They are very fast, very physical, and very aggressive. My guys just put everything they had into it. Coming off a (2022) season where we lost a lot of starters, I am very proud of this group.”

Michael Love is a TribLive reporter covering sports in the Alle-Kiski Valley and the eastern suburbs of Pittsburgh. A Clearfield native and a graduate of Westminster (Pa.), he joined the Trib in 2002 after spending five years at the Clearfield Progress. He can be reached at mlove@triblive.com.

Tags: Burrell, Greensburg C.C.