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Sunday, October 20, 2024 | 11:01 AM
Gateway senior James Lococo led the team with 20 goals in the regular season.
The Gateway boys soccer team found itself back on the pitch against a familiar face in the WPIAL Class 4A first round.
The No. 9 Gators, who tied for third in Section 1 with Central Catholic, were scheduled to make the long trip south and west to take on Canon-McMillan on Oct. 22 in a rematch of a 5-2 victory by the Big Macs in late August.
The playoff contest was to be played past the deadline for this week’s edition.
“The first game with Canon Mac was 1-1 20 minutes into the second half,” said Gateway coach Mike Rugh, who expected a competitive game this time around.
The playoff trip was Gateway’s fifth in a row.
Senior James LoCoco finished the regular season with a team-best 20 goals. He scored one of the Gators’ four goals and provided two assists in a 4-0 victory over Hempfield on Oct. 10 to close out the regular season.
“He came into the season hoping to reach double digits in goals, so this was a really big thing for him and for us,” Rugh said. “It’s not often someone can reach that many goals. He’s been pretty consistent for us all season.”
In addition to LoCoco’s tally against the Spartans, sophomore Cam Simon scored twice and freshman Ryan Helman found the back of the net. Freshman goalkeeper Maximo Estremera made seven saves.
The win snapped a three-game losing streak to the other three playoff-qualifying teams from Section 1: Plum, Norwin and Central Catholic.
“It was a nice way to get ready for the playoffs by getting a clean sheet and getting back some momentum,” Rugh said. “It was really good for the guys’ mindset. They had the playoff spot sealed up, but they still came out ready to win. They have improved all season.”
Plum enters the playoffs undefeated at 15-0-3 and is the No. 1 seed. The Mustangs will face the winner between the Gators and Big Macs in the quarterfinals Oct. 19.
Norwin (11-5-1) is seeded fifth.
“Plum was kind of what we expected,” Rugh said. “It was 5-1, but we were able to score on them which not many teams have been able to do this year. We went up 1-0 on Norwin before they came back and won 4-2. It was a lot better showing than the 6-0 drubbing we took at their place.
“We went into the Central Catholic game knowing that we kind of took something from them at their place (in a 4-3 overtime win). This game was another good one. It was 4-2, but we gave up one late. I think that they wanted it a little more than us.”
Gateway girls end season
It wasn’t the way the Lady Gators wanted to see their season come to a close.
Gateway and Shaler met Monday with fourth place in Section 1-3A on the line.
Both teams were 2-6-1. The winner punched its ticket to the WPIAL tournament.
The visiting Titans scored once in the first half and added two more over the second 40 minutes to finish off a 3-0 victory.
“It was extremely tough,” Gateway coach Caleb Kyper said. “For the first time in my three years coaching at Gateway, we held our fate in our own hands. You always want to be in that position of being in control. I thought we played a great first half. The first goal went against the run of play. But that kind of put us on our heels a little bit given the gravity of the game.
“We didn’t say too much after the game. Emotions were high. The seniors were extremely disappointed. But the next day, we met and talked about how far we had come to be in that situation and how we were a competitive team in our section. The emotions were still high, but they were positive emotions. The seniors and upperclassmen really laid the foundation to continue the growth of our program.”
The Shaler game was the final one in a Gateway varsity uniform for seniors Gianna D’Agostino, Gracyn Fry, Abby Griffiths, Addi Helman, Hayden Price and Anna Walter.
The Gators finished 5-9-1 overall.
Gateway wasn’t able to win its home finale, but it took care of business in its second-to-last home game with a 5-0 victory over Armstrong on Oct. 5.
Junior Peyton Kyper scored twice, Helman and Price tallied one goal apiece and freshman Andrea Girgenti added to the goal output.
“The girls were a little on edge to begin with because it was a Saturday game on homecoming,” coach Kyper said. “But the girls were also excited to make it a homecoming weekend event and not just another game. Once the game started, I thought we played well and organized, the way we wanted to see them play all year.”
Peyton Kyper finished the season with a team-best six goals. Price recorded five goals and five assists, and Helman and Fry each scored four times.
Freshman Ella Cepko shared time in goal this season with junior Julia Beam.
“We kept throwing Ella into situations a freshman shouldn’t always be in,” coach Kyper said. “She didn’t know from game to game whether she would be in goal or be one of the first off the bench as a field player. But she handled it with grace and maturity each time. Likewise with Julia, who handled the split keeper duties and also getting the chance to play in the field really well. That was a comfort for us coaches to have.”
Coach Kyper saif the message to his returning players was to take the reins of the program and continue to build.
“We want them to not take their foot off the gas, continue to work through the winter, continue to move forward from this point and get better again next year,” he said.
Helman was honored for her play this year with selection to the Section 1-3A all-star team.
“Addi put in the work throughout the summer and the preseason, came in a more mature leader, and was determined to make this her best season,” Kyper said.
Michael Love is a TribLive reporter covering sports in the Alle-Kiski Valley and the eastern suburbs of Pittsburgh. A Clearfield native and a graduate of Westminster (Pa.), he joined the Trib in 2002 after spending five years at the Clearfield Progress. He can be reached at [email protected].
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