Next stop ... State Finals!
COLLIER TWP — The ghosts of 2010 have officially been banished by the Mars girls soccer team.
Mani Brueckner, Jordyn White and Karli Paracca each scored a goal as the Planets overwhelmed South Park 3-0 in a PIAA Class AA semifinal at Chartiers Valley High School Tuesday night.
Last season, Mars lost in this round, ironically by a 3-0 decision to Mercyhurst Prep.
“We work hard every day, but we also realize how quickly it can be taken away,” said Planets coach Blair Gerlach. “Last season, we came into the (state semifinals) 24-0 and thought we were untouchable, like we'd win even if we didn't play well.
“To win here tonight and move on to the state title game, it's really exciting,” he added.
The Planets (24-0-1) will face Villa Joseph Marie (22-0) for the state championship at 5 p.m. Friday at Hersheypark Stadium.
Villa Joseph Marie, located northeast of Philadelphia, defeated Central Valley 5-1 in Tuesday's other semifinal.
Brueckner tallied the all-important first goal for the Planets in the 21st minute. Her shot from 30 yards out tucked itself in between the outstretched arms of South Park goalie Sierra Davis and the crossbar.
“The girl that was defending me, I couldn't get past her,” said Brueckner. “One of my teammates said I might as well try something else, so I took a shot from out there.
“It might only go in one out of 10 times, but it felt good to get that one tonight.”
The Planets had defeated the Eagles 2-1 in the WPIAL title game Nov. 5.
The Eagles (20-2-2) did manage seven shots on goal Tuesday, most of them on shots from more than 30 yards out. The Eagles simply could not penetrate Mars' defense for the majority of the night.
“We didn't change anything up tonight, just tried to get after it a bit more,” said South Park coach Shelly Thropp. “Mars is a good team and they played well defensively. Once we got behind 1-0, that really made it tough.”
“We put up a lot of goals,” said Gerlach, “and people like to focus on that. But every time our defense is put to the test, it seems to respond.”
Following a foul in the box called on South Park, White made it 2-0 with a penalty kick in the 60th minute.
South Park's best chance to score came in the 72nd minute when the Eagles were awarded back-to-back corner kicks.
Junior midfielder Niki Mazur took the second one to the right of Mars' net, but before her teammates could make a play on it, Planets goalkeeper Sarah Dailey jumped high and plucked the ball out of the air.
Seven minutes later, Paracca's score put a cap on a win that sends Mars to its first-ever girls soccer state title game.
Davis tallied nine saves for the Eagles.
