Kiski Area rides strong 2nd half to playoff win

By: Michael Love
Saturday, October 22, 2022 | 7:14 PM

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The Gateway boys soccer team had designs, as the No. 12 seed, of taking down No. 5 Kiski Area in a WPIAL Class 3A first-round game Saturday at Kiski Area’s Richard Dilts Stadium.

But the veteran Cavaliers, with eight seniors in the starting lineup, didn’t let their opportunity to advance slip away.

Seniors Cole Fluman and Anders Bordoy tallied second-half goals as Kiski Area defended home turf with a 2-0 victory.

“We were playing a little slower in the first half as we got into playoff mode,” Bordoy said. “We just needed to get our off-the-ball movement going.

“After that first half, we realized that we needed to get on the board, and everyone came out with a totally different mindset and changed the complexion of the game.”

Kiski Area moves on to the quarterfinals and a Wednesday matchup at 6:30 p.m. against No. 13 Montour (11-4-4) at a site to be determined.

The Spartans upset No. 4 Franklin Regional, 2-1, in the first round Saturday.

“Every team is in the playoffs for a reason, and you have to expect tough games and tough grinds,” Kiski Area coach Sean Arnold said. “It’s good to get that first win and get those jitters out of the way. Now, we have to start playing. It’s a new season, and if you want to win the championship, you have to go through some good teams, no matter what seed number is in front of them.”

Kiski Area (16-3), the Section 1 champion, won seven of eight to close the regular season, and it scored 63 goals in 17 regular-season games. The 16 wins ties the all-time record for single-season victories. Last year’s quarterfinal squad also won 16 games (16-4).

Saturday’s game was a rematch of a WPIAL first-round game last year won by Kiski Area, 5-1. Gateway, which finished tied with Penn-Trafford for third in Section 4, capped this 10-8-1 overall.

“Regardless of how the seeding went with the playoff brackets, we somehow got the third-best team in the WPIAL, and we battled them pretty hard,” an emotional Gators coach Bernie Stiles said.

“The guys should know that they are a pretty damn good team, and they showed it today. This is a team in Kiski Area we probably should’ve seen in the (quarterfinals). But it is what it is. I couldn’t be more proud of the guys. We had a couple of good chances in the first half, but Kiski is just such a good team. It seems like they haven’t graduated a starter in three years. They play with such experience. ”

The Cavaliers placed eight shots on goal against Gateway junior keeper Jack Kweder before Fluman struck gold with 31 minutes, 5 seconds left in the second half. Kiski Area executed its fourth corner kick of the game to get the play started.

The Gateway defense attempted to clear the ball out of the box, but Fluman was there to possess the ball at 15 yards out and fire a shot that beat Kweder.

“A one-goal lead in a game like this is absolutely crucial,” Bordoy said. “Once that went in, everyone started going crazy. It was such a great feeling.”

The Cavaliers smelled blood and hoped to add on. Bordoy, a Memphis commit, was taken down at 28 yards with 22:05 on the second-half clock.

But his direct kick sailed high of the Gateway goal.

Bordoy had another golden opportunity to give his team some breathing room a short time later, but Kweder came out to challenge at 15 yards and took the ball off Bordoy’s foot.

But Bordoy wouldn’t be kept off the scoreboard for long as he moved in with possession, worked his way around three Gators defenders and unleashed a shot at the top of the box that got past Kweder with exactly 12 minutes left in regulation.

While the Kiski Area offense took control on the scoreboard, the defense didn’t give Gateway much of anything. The Gators didn’t register a shot in the second half.

Kiski Area keeper Maddox Anderson made two saves to post his school-record 10th shutout this season. The Cavaliers finished with 18 shots, and 13 of them were on goal. Kweder finished with 11 saves.

Kiski Area controlled possession early in the game and fired of a pair of shots in the sixth minute.

Gateway countered with a free kick one minute later, but a shot by junior Blake Marsh from 33 yards sailed a few feet wide left of the Kiski Area goal.

Marsh then recorded the Gators’ first shot on goal in the 11th minute.

He also had an open chance later in the half but again shot wide left.

Kiski Area ended the first half with a 7-2 shots-on-goal advantage.

“We were all a little tense in that first half and early in the second half,” Arnold said.

“We always seem to rush a lot of passes and shots if we don’t score early and leave the other team in the game. Cole’s goal definitely broke the ice and kind of let us relax. He’s not really a goal scorer, but he put it in when we needed him to. Then Andres’ goal let us relax a little more.”

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: Gateway, Kiski Area