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Pinecrest at East Chapel Hill Thursday, October 27th, 2005 Wildcat Stadium, Chapel Hill, NC |
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Pinecrest at East Chapel Hill Thursday, October 27th, 2005 Wildcat Stadium, Chapel Hill, NC |
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| Take equal parts talented competition, mix vigorously on an ample field and cook on high heat for 80 minutes and you’ve got the perfect recipe for an appetizer to wrap up the regular soccer season and set the table for the playoffs. Pinecrest put the lid on East Chapel in the PAC-6 kitchen Thursday night in a 2-1 pressure cooker that gave the Patriots a 19-3-1 end to the regular season. There were no slow moments in a match that saw both teams go end to end at a rolling boil from start to finish. The wide Wildcat field, wider than any the Patriots had played on this season, provided some deep corners and open lanes that Pinecrest used effectively. The Patriots jumped ahead in the 28th minute on a scoring drive set in motion when forward Tommy Ransdell’s run down the right side was detoured by a hard tackle near the end line, setting up a Pinecrest throw-in. Matt Sessoms, wide open for the toss, made the pivot and delivered a diagonal feed to Travis Grasso coming in hard off the left side. Grasso burned the net on the run to put the Pats up 1-0. East recoiled with some intense pressure on the Patriot defense as the second stanza got under way. Pinecrest keeper Glen Holmes had several fingertip saves in the melee before the ’Cats slipped the equalizer past on a free kick taken from the left sideline. Wildcat freshman Dallas Cederberg, who had lingered at the near post, got a toe on the ball and made the tap for the score. Patriot hopes were raised momentarily following the East goal when the linesman signaled an offside violation, before being overruled by the center official. Tied at 1-1, both teams launched frenzied attempts to break the deadlock. The attack and counterattack action between two closely-matched teams produced an exciting display that put both squads on a collision course with the clock. The tide turned to Pinecrest with 19 minutes left when Sessoms dashed into an open spot 10 yards out and smoked a shot in the net to put the Patriots out front. The word was “defense” in the final minutes as junior defensive trio Karl Ainslie, Charlie Davis and Silas Cole repelled a barrage of Wildcat intrusions. Holmes, the target of the Wildcat offense, kept the door locked in one of his best performances of the season. The match was the perfect segue into the playoffs for the Patriots — fast paced, physical, end-to-end play on a good pitch with a strong opponent. Pinecrest coach Larry Martin had nothing but praise for the match and his team, saying, “We needed a game like this. It’s what we’ll see in the playoffs.” As for playoff predictions, Martin would only say, “It’s playoff time. Whoever we play is going to be a quality opponent. We just have to play well to get where we want to be.” A 14-0 sweep of the Mid-Southeastern Conference earned Pinecrest a first-round bye in the state playoffs. The Patriots host the winner of the South View-wildcard team first-round match on Saturday, Nov. 5, at 7 p.m. <-Previous 10-26-05 at Douglas Byrd (W, 9-1) 11-5-05 vs Rose (Second Round, State Tourn. W, 3-0) Next-> |