In a battle of teams unbeaten in section play, Freeport stops rival Burrell

By: Michael Love
Monday, September 15, 2025 | 10:11 PM

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The Freeport and Burrell girls soccer teams renewed their storied rivalry Monday night at Freeport Area Athletic Stadium.

Something had to give as both teams came into the matchup a perfect 3-0 in Section 2-2A.

The Yellowjackets scored twice in the first half and extended their lead over the second 40 minutes. Burrell got one on the board, but Freeport’s advantage was too steep, and it finished off a 3-1 victory.

“The records don’t matter in a game like this. We know it’s going to be a battle with Burrell every single time,” said Yellowjackets coach Steve Kukic, who saw his team improve to 6-1 overall with another key section battle at Knoch on Wednesday.

“I thought we did a really good job in the first half of spreading it out. Our movement off the ball was really good. We were able to hit Cam (Woods) at her feet a lot and were able to get a lot of chances from there. I think if we would’ve converted some of our chances in the first half, it could’ve been a three- or four-goal game at that point.”

Burrell, which fell to 4-2-1 overall, hopes to bounce back at home Wednesday against Shady Side Academy.

The Bulldogs took Freeport to overtime Sept. 3 before the Yellowjackets prevailed.

Freeport defeated Burrell for the fifth straight time. Three of the previous four meetings between the teams went to overtime. The Yellowjackets edged the Bucs, 2-1, in the other matchup.

The teams will meet again at Burrell on Oct. 6.

Despite facing a 2-0 deficit at halftime, the Bucs came out strong to start the second half. Sophomore Parker Moore unleashed a shot from about 25 yards in the first minute that was pulled in by Freeport keeper Alyssa Alcorn.

Burrell continued to press and keep possession in Freeport’s end of the field. But the Yellowjackets extended their lead to 3-0 with 28 minutes, 25 seconds left on CeCe Schlegel’s fourth goal of the season.

The Bucs were in a deeper hole, but they didn’t fold their tents and converted with 24:40 left as Peyton Coury found the back of the net with a shot set up by Allie McMahon.

“I liked our response in the second half, and I told them that after the game,” Burrell coach Frank Nesko said.

“In the first half, we were on our heels a little bit and were uncharacteristically tentative. I think that is because of the respect we have for Freeport. Obviously, they are a very talented team from front to back. We got punched in the face in the first half, but we were able to punch back in the second half, and it was a much more even game. That tells us that we can play with anybody.

“Getting back at it against another quality team in Shady Side is huge for us. We have to be ready to play. That is our section, with Knoch, too. It’s a grind.”

Freeport set the pace early with its first goal nine minutes in. Woods tallied her team-leading ninth of the season as she took a through ball from Peyton Los, moved in and fired it into the left side of the Bucs goal.

Burrell pushed deep into Freeport territory with nine minutes until halftime. Mylah Buchak made a dangerous move into the box with the ball and looked to tie the score. However, Alcorn was able to put a stop to Buchak’s scoring attempt and keep the Yellowjackets in the lead.

Woods gained possession with about four minutes to go until the break, came down the right wing and crossed the ball into the Burrell box. But the ball sailed out of the reach of any Freeport scoring threats.

Freeport recorded another solid scoring chance with 2:50 left before breaking through again in the waning seconds of the half.

Nia DiSanti scored her sixth of the season with just 26 seconds on the clock. Ella McConville assisted on the goal.

“The message at halftime was to make sure we were safe in the back,” Kukic said.

“We didn’t want to take any unnecessary chances with the 2-0 lead. I thought we maybe took that a little too literal where we just wanted to get the ball off our foot. We weren’t taking any chances. I thought that helped (Burrell) get back in the game. They were desperate in the second half, and they pressed us pretty well. The third goal was huge, obviously, just to give us a little breathing room and let us exhale a little bit. We never like to give up a goal, but I thought we did a good job after they scored of locking in defensively.”

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, Freeport