October 25, 2007 Issue                                       

©2007 The Chestnut Hill Local

CHA, PC battle wind, each other to a tie
by JUSTIN GOLDMAN

The intensity on the field last Friday afternoon mirrored the typical type of intensity for any two dueling Inter-Ac soccer foes. Both Chestnut Hill Academy and Penn Charter refused to give an inch en route to their 1-1 tie. The tie keeps both teams right where they were in the standings with CHA holding down the second spot and Penn Charter in third.

In the early going, CHA came out hungry on the road and controlled the tempo of the game. The Blue Devils generated many scoring opportunities, but the Quakers’ defense stiffened when it needed to and preserved the 0-0 tie at halftime.

Both teams fought through sporadic rains and gusty winds that played a role in each team’s performance.

“We were fighting the wind in the first half,” said Penn Charter Head Coach Bob DiBennedetto. “I wanted to get through the first half with zeros and we did.”

Even with the wind advantage, it was difficult for CHA to get scoring opportunities for Mike Marino, one of its star offensive players.

“David Maas was instructed to mark Mike Marino the whole game,” DiBennedetto said. “He did a great job for us and also played very well offensively.”

In the second stanza, the Blue Devils were once again the aggressors, and held possession for much of the early going.

“We tried to attack wide before we went forward,” said CHA Head Coach Mark Weinmann. “We did not want to get into a kicking around contest. In the second half, we just tried to keep more possession, and that is what the game is all about.”

CHA nearly got on the board 10 minutes into the second half when Ryan Duffy sent a perfect through pass to Mike Marino who was making a run down the center of the field and had beaten the defense. Marino took a shot off the bounce, but it misfired over the net.

Just five minutes after Marino’s prime scoring opportunity, the Blue Devils finally found a way to penetrate the Penn Charter defense. Joe Breen sent a pass on the ground to Peter Adubato in the middle of the six-yard box. Adubato had a defender on his back, but found a way to turn, and fired a low, left-footed shot into the back left corner of the net to give CHA the 1-0 advantage it had been looking for.

“It’s always dangerous after you score that first goal,” Weinmann said. “I knew they were going to throw everything at us after that.”

Penn Charter did precisely that after getting down 1-0. It showed its resiliency and refused to give up, even though CHA was controlling the pace of the game.

Just seven minutes after CHA took its lead, Penn Charter earned a corner kick. Ryan Broderick took the corner and played it low, seemingly right to a Blue Devil defender. However, the defender misplayed the ball, and it went right to PC’s David Maas who deposited a low shot into the back left corner of the net.

“We have been down before this year and have been able to come back,” DiBennedetto said. “We are always pretty confident.”

As the game wore on, the intensity heightened. CHA nearly got the go ahead go on two different occasions. First with 15 minutes to play, Marino raced past the defense, but got tangled up from behind with a Quaker defender and could not get off a shot. No foul was called on the play. Then, with just five minutes to play, Breen crossed the ball to Marino at the top of the 18-yard box, and he got a head on the ball and put surprising velocity on it, but the PC keeper made a diving save going to his left to preserve the tie.

Both teams battled it out until the final whistle and regulation ended in a 1-1 tie, leading to two five minute overtime periods. In the extra sessions, both teams were exhausted and really could not generate any good scoring opportunities.

“I was really proud of how my guys fought,” Weinmann said.

The emotion on the field was typical of any CHA, Penn Charter contest in any sport with neither team backing down from the other.

“These two teams are very close to each other geographically, both programs recruit a lot of the same kids, and the kids all know each other,” DiBennedetto said. “When these two teams get together, it is always going to be a really hard fought game.”

Both teams return to the pitch this week with Penn Charter facing off against Episcopal at home of Friday while the Blue Devils take on the Haverford School at home on Friday.