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Penalty kicks put Conestoga in final

The undefeated season is still intact, and Conestoga will play for a state championship.

Conestoga goalkeeper Clark Fox had nine saves against Council Rock North. (Elizabeth Robertson/Staff Photographer)
Conestoga goalkeeper Clark Fox had nine saves against Council Rock North. (Elizabeth Robertson/Staff Photographer)Read more

The undefeated season is still intact, and Conestoga will play for a state championship.

For the second time in 10 days, Conestoga emerged from a goal down to beat Council Rock North, this time advancing to the PIAA Class AAA title game with a tense 4-1 win in penalty kicks Tuesday night at Harriton.

After going into halftime knotted at 1-1, Conestoga and North battled deadlocked for 80 minutes. Pioneers keeper Clarke Fox, who has been spectacular in penalty situations all year, snuffed attempts by Chris Kulczytzky and Ian Fitzsimmons to seal the team's ticket to Hershey.

Andrew Gonzalez, Andrew Connors, and Nick Laganelli converted their kicks before Sean Tait put Conestoga's fourth PK attempt past Indians goalie Will Terry. North's Alec Neumann hit one for the Indians.

The Pioneers (23-0-1) will make their first appearance in the state final since winning it all in 1988 at 5 p.m. Saturday in Hershey. They will face District 7 champion Upper St. Clair.

North's Derek Antonini gave the Indians a lead by flicking a header past Fox in the eighth minute. Connors got the equalizer in the 28th minute, driving the ball on the ground inside the far post.

On Nov. 5, Conestoga rallied from a goal down to top the Indians, 2-1, in the District 1 championship game on the same Harriton turf.

Ranked in the nation's top 50 for the vast majority of the season - this week at a season high of No. 6 in the ESPN poll - the Pioneers, ranked No. 1 in Southeastern Pennsylvania by The Inquirer, have not lost since falling in the 2010 state quarterfinals to Central Dauphin on Nov. 13 of last year.

The lone blemish on their record came in a scoreless draw with Friends Schools League champ Shipley on Oct. 22.

Conestoga displayed resolve throughout the game, weathering a flurry of corner attempts by North before earning its first corner chance of the game just before the end of regulation.

Both sides hit posts in the overtime periods, when legs became weary and some officials worried that the diesel-powered field lights would run out of fuel.

North put a header right on goal early in the second OT, but it was saved on the post by an abiding Conestoga defender. With a little more than a minute remaining, the Pioneers hit a post of their own.

All the while, both keepers continuously made clutch saves and were active in playing balls in the air and controlling the box.

For North (18-6-1), ranked third in Southeastern Pennsylvania by The Inquirer, the loss ends a brilliant final six weeks of the season. During that stretch, they were undefeated against every team not named Conestoga.

After consecutive losses in the first week of October, the Indians shut out seven of 13 opponents, won 11 games, and earned the Suburban One League National Conference championship.

Council Rock North   1 0 0 0 – 1

Conestoga   1 0 0 0 – 1

(Conestoga wins, 4-1, on penalty kicks.)

Goals: C-Andrew Connors; CRN-Derek Antonini.

Saves: C-Clarke Fox 9; CRN-Will Terry 9.