The Hermits used their ball control style, ping-ponging passes all over their artificial turf field during Tuesday's 3-1 win over Bishop Eustace in a South Jersey Non-Public A semifinal.

Now the Hermits look to defend their sectional crown with Thursday's 6 p.m. sectional final against Christian Brothers Academy at Holmdel.

"They play soccer the way it should be played," said Bishop Eustace coach Rich Jones, whose young team finished 9-7 and showed a good deal of spunk. "They are athletic, tactical and have the players to play that style."

Not every team does.

In soccer, the easiest thing to do is boot the ball out of harm's way. The Hermits have the presence of mind to hold on until a man is open. There is so much movement without the ball and so many decisions to make with it.

"When we tick-tack it around you see that it can frustrate teams," said St. Augustine defender Justin TenBrook, who is an integral part of the attack, moving up from the back. "We look for a gap and then go through."

St. Augustine (21-1) used this strategy to score in the game's fourth minute. Midfielder Connor Hurff, whose vision and ability to make pin-point passes makes him such a dangerous player, sent teammate Christian Gill on goal. Gill put the finishing touches, and the Hermits had a 1-0 lead.

That goal was a typical play by Hurff, especially considering that he has 20 assists this season.

"There are not too many players who can hold the ball like him and are so calm with the ball," St. Augustine coach Les Heggan said of Hurff. "He has the ability to slow the game down."

Although it's not too slow for the opponent.

"At lot of us play a high level of club ball, and this is a great style for us," Hurff said.

Heggan employs the style for one reason.

"I like possession," he said. "I don't like giving up possession, and we work on this every day."

Ranked No. 2 in South Jersey by The Inquirer, St. Augustine's only loss was a 1-0 defeat to Rancocas Valley in the finals of the South Jersey Coaches Tournament. That was a game in which the Hermits met a team that also played its style.

"I think playing a team like Rancocas Valley really helped," Heggan said.

And he also knew that facing Eustace would be a challenge even though the Crusaders entered the game with a 9-6 record.

Still, this is a Eustace team that had just two seniors and two juniors, and the future appears bright. It's also a team with wins over sectional finalists Lenape and Moorestown.

Eustace has a top-flight goalie in junior Tyler Miller, who made a sensational save on a blast by Hurff to the short side to keep the score 1-0.

After St. Augustine's Martin Murray made the score 2-0 with about 15 minutes left in regulation, Miller came out of goal for Eustace and played offense.

Yet the best offense was still being played by Hurff, who blasted a 20-yarder for the Hermits' third goal. Late in the game, Miller scored Eustace's goal on a scramble in front of the net, but at that point the game was well in hand.

For the Hermits, style and substance had prevailed once again.

Bishop Eustace    0 1 - 1

St. Augustine    1 2 - 3

Goals: S-Christian Gill, Martin Murray, Connor Hurff. B-Tyler Miller. Saves S-John Richards 4, B-Tyler Miller 6, Vince Maiorino 1.

Contact staff writer Marc Narducci at 856-779-3225 or mnarducci@phillynews.com.