CHA tops PC in soggy soccer match

by TOM UTESCHER

On a damp Tuesday last week the Chestnut Hill Academy-Penn Charter game was the only Inter-Ac soccer match that took place as scheduled, partly because the Blue Devils and Quakers each needed a league victory so badly.

Sitting in fourth place going into the match, host CHA rang up a 4-1 win, leveling its Inter-Ac record at 2-2 (for six points in the standings) and keeping faint hopes of a league championship alive. PC remained in last place at 0-4 (2-9-1 overall), and even if the Quakers were to win their last six Inter-Ac contests, the resulting 18 points would only produce a title if a string of miracles occurred.

The previous Friday, Chestnut Hill had not only lost a league game to Haverford, it also lost the services of two starters. Senior captain Pat Spanninger received a red-card suspension along with a Fords player, and junior goalie Taylor Rooke tore a calf muscle and is out for several weeks.

Senior Hal Martin got the start in goal last Tuesday, and he found himself protecting a 1-0 lead just 49 seconds into the game, as Scott Redpath delivered a pass to Andrew Ferry, who scored from the left side of the penalty box. Charter had Pat Farrell and Chris Steffa both fire wide to the left, and the Devils' Martin stopped shots by Mike Blechschmidt and Eric Muller of the Quakers.

Later Blechschmidt, a freshman, made good on an attempt exactly halfway through the first period. Taking a run through the box, he received a pass at his feet from Steffa to score Charter's lone goal of the afternoon. The Blue Devils assured themselves of a halftime lead with five minutes remaining, when Chelsey Roebuck sent a ball through to scorer Mike Griffin in the right side of the penalty area.

At the start of the trailing half the visitors immediately rushed the CHA goal, and Devils defender Ian DeSantis had to kick the ball away from the goal line to keep the Quakes from tying the match a second time. Chestnut Hill countered and deposited its third goal just a minute-and-a-half into the period, as Steph Chareczko drove in from the left wing for the marker.

Frank Spada, who had several near misses earlier in the game, fired a rocket from the right wing to complete CHA's total with four minutes to go. In the final two minutes, PC's Farrell booted a direct kick to the right of the cage, and another Charter shot went over the crossbar.

Each team launched 15 shots in the contest, but many of the Quakers' attempts were not on net, and CHA's Martin only needed to make four saves for the win. PC keeper Alex Naveiro came up with a number of difficult stops to keep the match from turning into a rout, winding up with nine saves altogether.

UPDATE: On Friday, CHA's 4-2 win at Episcopal and Haverford's victory over defending champ Germantown Academy put the Blue Devils right back in the Inter-Ac hunt. Haverford moved into first place with ten points, while Chestnut Hill (which got three goals from Spanninger and one from Ferry) climbed into a tie for second with GA, with nine apiece. The Devils, who've played one more league game than the other top contenders, travel to GA this Friday for a 3:45 PM match.