Closing the deal
JACKSON TWP — For 10 days, the Seneca Valley girls soccer team had to live with the sting of squandering a 3–0 lead to Butler in a 4-3 loss in the regular-season finale.
It was 10 excruciating days of eagerness to get back onto the pitch and put that haunting memory out of its collective mind.
Leading 3-0 over Mt. Lebanon 13 minutes into the second half of their WPIAL 4A quarterfinal, the Raiders allowed Julia LaLama to get behind their defense for a goal that dredged those memories of 10 days ago.
“When we saw that goal go in, I think all of our heads dropped a little bit and we looked at each other and said, 'We're not letting Butler happen again,'” said Seneca Valley junior Bre Valentovish.
Instead of shrinking, the Raiders rose to the occasion, making it 4-1 off a goal from Julia Redilla and added two more in a convincing 6-1 win over the Blue Devils Wednesday night at NexTier Stadium.
The victory did more than merely send the Raiders on to the WPIAL 4A semifinals.
It exorcised a big demon.
“All of a sudden it was like here we go again,” said Seneca Valley coach Mark Perry. “But we got that fourth goal and two more. I just thought in that second half we shook off the rust of not playing for 10 days.”
The first half was played fairly evenly.
Both teams had ample opportunities, but had shots stonewalled by the keepers or narrowly miss the cage.
Valentovish finally broke through with less than seven minutes remaining in the first half when she gathered in her own shot that ricocheted off Mt. Lebo (11-6-3) keeper Francesca Beuger and booted it with her left foot into the net for a 1-0 lead.
“That's what she brings,” Perry said. “She brings that physicality, but she also has the ability to score goals.”
It was Valentovish's team-leading 18th goal of the season.
The Raiders (14-2) wasted little time making it 2-0 at the start of the second half when Ashley Shea scored less than three minutes in. Lu Sileo added another goal a few minutes later for a 3-0 lead.
After Redilla's score made it 4-1, Ally Smith and Mia Zec padded the lead and sent Seneca Valley on in the playoffs.
“When we got the fourth goal, I think everyone got back on track,” Valentovish said. “We put them away in the end.
“It was a long 10 days,” she added. “We were very anxious to play again. Like Coach Perry said, we didn't want to be the headline tomorrow for the wrong reasons.”
Instead, SV is the headline for a positive one.
The Raiders will play either Upper St. Clair or Pine-Richland Saturday at a site and time to be determined.
“The goal was just to move on,” Perry said. “Mt. Lebo is a good defensive team. They don't give up many goals. We got some bounces tonight. They weren't pretty goals, but they count and we'll take them.”
