Peters Twp, Canon-Mac tie, split section title
McMURRAY – The only way both teams walked out of Confluence Financial Partners Stadium a winner Wednesday night was with a tie.
The previous sentence doesn’t make sense in most cases, but in the context of the Canon-McMillan and Peters Township girls soccer game that was the case.
That’s because both teams were tied in the Class 4A Section 2 standings entering their section finale against each other and a draw meant both teams would share the title.
And that’s what happened.
Canon-McMillan and Peters Township played to a 1-1 tie and split the section title.
It’s the Big Macs’ first section crown since 2016 and Peters Township’s third in a row and 20th in program history. They ended up finishing in a three-way tie with Mt. Lebanon at 7-1-2.
“Obviously we wanted it all for ourselves, but we’re looking at playoffs and seeing right now and I think (a section title) helps us significantly for seeding,” Indians coach Rob Heuler said. “I hope it goes our way where we get a top seed, a bye, and a little more rest going into the playoffs.”
Peters Township won the first meeting, 3-0, but with each team sporting an identical section record the title is shared.
Mount Lebanon clinched a share with a 3-0 win against Upper St. Clair. The sharing part isn’t a concern for the Big Macs, considering the drought they ended.
“I told the girls the year still goes on the banner up on the gym even if you tie,” Canon-McMillan coach Matt Fonagy said. “It shows the level of teams in this south section. Peters Township, Mt. Lebanon battled all season and it ended up all square. I think all three teams have a lot of momentum going into the playoffs.”
Brynn Busch scored for Peters Township and Rachel Tomley had Canon-McMillan’s goal. Both goals were in the first half.
It wasn’t like either team was settling for a tie. The draw was a result of a hard-fought match between two rival teams.
The intensity of the crowd and both benches seemed to grow louder as each whistle blew and each foul was called.
A strange sequence 10 minutes into the second half nearly resulted in a tie-breaking goal for Peters Township. Busch put a harmless shot wide from 25 yards out, but the referees deemed it hit off a Canon-McMillan player and gave the Indians a corner.
On the corner the Indians put two shots on goal, but Canon-McMillan was able to keep it out.
Canon-McMillan earned a corner a few minutes later, but the cross to the back post eluded two Big Macs players looking for a headed attempt at goal.
Both teams had a few opportunities in the final 10 minutes, but nothing came of them.
When the final whistle blew, the Big Macs players celebrated something they haven’t done in 10 years.
“It’s amazing and something we’ve been working at for four years,” Tomley said. “It’s a great feeling to finally get what we’ve been working for this whole year.”
Players from both teams gathered to take a picture together prior to the start of the match and then proceeded to play a physical first half that saw both teams get on the board.
Peters Township struck first when Busch scored in the 14th minute. Busch took a shot in the 18-yard box that took a bad hop on Big Macs keeper Skyler Smith and went between her legs into the net.
Six minutes after the goal, Canon-McMillan forward Ella Shields was injured on a collision during a race for the ball near the boundary. Shields was tended to before going to the Canon-McMillan bench. She returned to the game seven minutes later.
On the restart after Shields’ injury, Canon-McMillan got its first scoring chance and cashed in. Tomley, a senior forward, scored from the right side inside the 18-yard box to tie it at 1-1.
Tomley credited her teammates with setting up the goal.
“First off, Sarah Warzinski played a beautiful ball to Sara Coffman, who beat her defender around the end,” Tomley said. “All I had to do was the easy part, which was place the ball into the goal. It was all them.”
Tomley was sporting a Zoro-like, black mask around her face to protect a broken nose she suffered last Monday.
“I wasn’t going to miss this game,” Tomley said. “I’ll be playing with it on the rest of the season. It’s worth it.”
The Big Macs received two yellow cards late in the first half. Sarah Coffman was carded in the 30th minute after making contact with a Peters Township player while sliding to attempt to get to a loose ball in the Indians’ 18-yard box.
Makayla Szykowny was cautioned in the 39th minute for a shove in the back of a Peters Township player.