Shady Side Academy blanks Camp Hill to claim PIAA Class A girls soccer title

By: HSSN Staff
Saturday, November 18, 2017 | 1:00 PM

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HERSHEY — What a difference a year can make.

Returning to the PIAA Class A girls soccer championship game at Hersheypark Stadium, Shady Side Academy washed away the memory of last year's lopsided defeat with a 4-0 win over Camp Hill.

The Indians (17-4) had more scoring opportunities in the steady rain and took advantage of a 8-4 corners surplus. When the Lions (16-9) did threaten, sophomore goalie Molly Skrovak was up to the challenge.

Of course, it was a different cast of characters for Shady Side this time around than in last year's 9-4 loss to Fairfield.

“We lost seven starters from last year, so we didn't know what to expect,” Indians coach Leah Powers said. “What happened is (the freshman and sophomores) just bonded, and they were happy to be together. There was no drama.”

There also was not much drama to the result of the championship game, and it was the youngsters who helped make it a comfortable win. Freshman Melissa Riggins scored the first goal, sophomore Caroline Davis scored the second, and sophomore goalie Mollie Skrovak made eight saves for the shutout.

The Indians started to establish some control midway through the first half, getting a few corners and producing a goal off of one of them. Davis started a corner on the right side that reached Riggins in the box. Riggins pushed the ball high into the net for a 1-0 lead with 23:01 left in the first quarter.

“That was huge,” Powers said. “I told the girls that we had to score first and shut them down.”

Davis increased the lead to 2-0 with 2:13 left in the half, connecting on a high floater from 25 yards out for an unassisted goal.

“She's an exciting player and has great ball control,” Powers said of Davis. “She will almost always beat the defender.”

Through the first half, Skvorak kept the Lions off the board on a few surges, including one sequence that required a save off of Camp Hill shot, a stop off of a near own goal and clear out of bounds. That still led to a Lions corner, but Skvorak made another save to end the threat.

Junior Krystyna Rytel put the game out of reach in the second half with her 100th and 101st career goals.

With 11:36 left in the game, Rytel scored on another corner that was started by Davis for a 3-0 lead. Rytel also capped off the game with a goal with 5:04 remaining. Riggins assisted on that tally.

The final was almost more lopsided, as Shady Side came within inches of two other goals in the second half. Rytel hit the left post on a corner, and Sophia McMahon had an apparent goal waved off because she was less than a step offsides.

Shady Side had a 9-8 shots advantage.

David Bohr is a freelance writer.

Tags: Shady Side Academy