North Catholic beats Belle Vernon in PIAA boys soccer quarterfinals to make final four
MONROEVILLE — North Catholic senior Evan Laubenthal was laying stomach down with his hands near his head on the turf Saturday at Antimarino Stadium. Trojans goalie Logan Mueser scrambled to lift him off the ground.
“It’s not over,” Mueser bellowed. “It’s not over.”
North Catholic was given a reprieve because Belle Vernon goalkeeper Morgan Bunch came off his line early to stop Laubenthal’s penalty kick. The Trojans -- who would have lost with a miss -- took advantage of the second chance.
Laubenthal buried his retake and Shane Schollaert made the eventual game-winner to help North Catholic pick up a 2-1 (4-3 PKs) win in a PIAA Class 2A semifinal.
Mueser stopped three of Belle Vernon’s attempts, including a lunging stop on the potential game-tyer by Jordan Jerome.
“In JV last year, I saved three out of six,” Mueser said. “I know my team needs me in the end. I just pick a side and go. It’s luck, honestly.”
North Catholic coach Scott Schlegel was impressed with Mueser’s quick thinking. Picking up and encouraging Laubenthal showed growth.
“When you are a goalkeeper, those are the moments that you relish,” Schlegel said. “Also, you feel like an island sometimes. For him to come off his island and pick another kid up and give him the confidence to keep going is big stuff. That’s a junior who became a senior quickly.”
The Trojans (20-2-2) will play the winner of District 10 champion Fairview and WPIAL runner-up Quaker Valley in a state semifinal Tuesday at a site and time to be determined.
North Catholic kept the pressure off WPIAL champion Belle Vernon, who knocked the Trojans out of the district playoffs, from the outset. The Trojans had five shots on goal in the first 15 minutes, including two that made it on target.
North Catholic junior forward Dylan DeVore cashed in the game’s first goal in the 16th minute when he guided a rebound back into the net. Belle Vernon knew it had to refocus quickly.
“We knew they were going to come out aggressive,” Leopards coach Tyler Caterino said. “They weren’t going to be happy about the result a few weeks ago. They had their time to make their adjustments and we had ours.”
Chris Showman tied the game in the 50th minute when he hit a rocket of a free kick that landed in the back left-hand corner of the net.
The Trojans had a number of strong scoring opportunities in the second half and in overtime. Matthew Liscinsky had a shot with five minutes remaining in double overtime that Bunch parried over the crossbar.
Schlegel said he felt North Catholic could have done more with their opportunities.
“Deserved would be a stretch,” Schlegel said. “We got a lot of changes on goal. We did what we had to do. They were disciplined and organized and are hard to break down. That’s why they didn’t give up many goals in the playoffs.”
Liscinsky, Colin Pilla, Laubenthal and Schollaert made the Trojans’ penalty kicks. Bunch put the pressure on North Catholic by saving the Trojans’ first attempt.
Belle Vernon led 3-2 in penalty kicks after Dominico Congelio, Carter Stairs and Chris Showman. The Leopards nearly won when Bunch batted down Laubenthal’s first attempt. But North Catholic got another chance and picked each other up.
“I have full confidence in my kids to score,” Mueser said. “Even when they didn’t, we brought it back and we won it in the end. It was our game the entire time.”
