NORTH HUNTINGDON TWP — A goal from Butler's Justin Stewart in the 9th minute of play did not stand alone in deciding the Golden Tornado's WPIAL Class AAAA first-round boys soccer playoff against Penn-Trafford.

What the tally did do was dictate the strategy with which both teams approached the rest of the game.

Stewart received a pass from the left of the Warrior net from junior Tate Mohney and headed a shot past goalkeeper Logan Kreutzberger for a crucial early lead.

Despite several quality scoring chances, the Warriors never did score the equalizer and gave up a second goal to Stewart in the second half of a 2-0 Butler win at Norwin High School's stadium Saturday afternoon.

“We put ourselves behind the 8-ball by giving up the first goal,” said Penn-Trafford coach Rick Nese. “After getting a lead, a lot of teams pack it in on defense and that's what Butler did. We've seen it before, but you have to be so technically sound to beat that.”

Butler (14-5) will face Peters Township (15-0-1), a 2-0 winner over Fox Chapel, in a quarterfinal showdown Wednesday at a site and time to be determined.

The Tornado tallied just six shots on goal in the game. Two of them went for scores, though coach Troy Mohney would have liked to have seen more balanced play from his team.

“I didn't like the way we responded after getting the early lead,” he said. “We stopped playing the way we wanted to play. I still wanted to put pressure on them (Warriors).”

Instead, it was Penn-Trafford (11-4-2) that tallied more scoring opportunities, but Butler's defense and goalie, Andrew Chwalik, kept the Warriors off the scoreboard.

Chwalik ended the game with nine saves.

“As a goalkeeper, it means a lot to get a shutout, especially in the playoffs,” he said. “The defense was sound in front of me and the shutout proves they played well, too.

“We ended the regular season with four straight wins and mentally, I think we really came together late. It seems like there's more camaraderie on the team now.”

Senior midfielder Austin Kreutzberger was in the middle of several chances for the Warriors. In the 12th minute, he blasted a shot from 15 yards, but Chwalik was there for the save.

“They knew Austin was a big guy for us,” said Nese. “They were focused on not letting him create. We went out against a good team with an outstanding goalkeeper.”

“One key for us today was getting Tyler Rankin back,” said Coach Mohney. “He was injured late in the season, returned here and he does a great job of getting our back line organized.”

One of the Warriors' best chances in the second half came in the 39th minute. Nick Tarabrella received a pass from the right of Butler's net and sent a shot toward the goal. It hit the crossbar, but Penn-Trafford regained possession and got a shot off from 25 yards that Chwalik corralled.

In the 59th minute, Stewart's second goal made things even tougher on Penn-Trafford.

Adam Blose was just to the left of Penn-Trafford's goal. He headed the ball toward the opposite side of the net. Logan Kreutzberger, who stopped four shots in the game, extended himself and succeeded in batting the ball away, but it carried right to Stewart, who headed in the game's second and final goal.

“They started moving a lot of bodies forward,” Coach Mohney said of the Warriors, “so getting that second goal was huge.”