Hilbert saves C-M, helps defeat rival PT
CANONSBURG – On the large roster for the Canon-McMillan High School boys soccer team, junior Alex Hilbert is one of six goalkeepers listed.
An amicable group as a whole, it all comes down to the hot hand finding the majority of time in net.
It’s been Hilbert’s net to lose, and he made sure it stayed that way Thursday night.
Dressed in all pink, Hilbert made a handful of diving saves around the net to keep Canon-McMillan in the game long enough for the Big Macs to score a pair of goals and defeat Section 4-AAAA rival Peters Township, 2-0.
It extended the C-M’s winning streak to five games and ended the Indians’ run of four straight victories.
“He was huge tonight,” Big Macs coach Larry Fingers said about Hilbert. “It’s a strange situation where you have six goalkeepers who are all pretty close (in skill level). It’s a weird place to be. Alex is always fighting to be the guy.”
Hilbert kept Canon-McMillan (10-2, 13-2) in the match on several occasions, including an opportunity from PT’s Brian Bruzdewicz with 7:40 remaining in the second half when he dove to his left to make a save with his hand.
To open the second half, Hilbert broke up a pass to an uncovered Bruzdewicz that prevented a one-on-one opportunity, then robbed Indians defender Christian Verner of a goal destined for the upper corner seconds later to keep the score deadlocked at 0-0 with 34:50 remaining.
That was when the Big Macs finally found success after numerous tries on the attack.
In what would be an usually long throw-in for Tommy Samosky, he dropped the ball off short from the sidelines to the awaiting foot of Aiden Walsh, who, from 30 yards away, buried a goal under the crossbar to give C-M a 1-0 lead at the 50-minute mark.
“We always have the short option available,” Fingers said. “We just normally have a height advantage and want to use it. That’s why we opt for long throws. In that situation, we had done a couple of long throws in a row and they began to defend it that way, so we took it short. It worked out.”
Five minutes later, Joey Fonagy doubled the Big Macs’ lead to 2-0 when he corkscrewed a Peters Township (6-5, 9-6) defender and moved in on goal. With another defender on his hip and an attacking goalkeeper, Fonagy slid a shot into the net with 20:24 left.
“The difference is (Canon-McMillan) finished its chances and we didn’t,” said PT coach Bob Dyer. “I don’t think the chances were outnumbered. We just didn’t take advantage of our shots and that’s what big games come down to.”
Hilbert then finished his shutout performance with a pair of saves in the final 10 minutes. He again robbed Bruzdewicz to the top right-hand corner with a glove stop. The Indians then got another rush when David Phillips put a perfect back-heel pass in stride to Tyson Antosh, who was denied on a punch save on a hard shot inside 15 yards.
“I think there is pressure on (Alex),” Fingers said. “We have specialized coaches that work with our goalkeepers. He didn’t start last year but has been good this season. When you have the record we do, you don’t try to change much.”