After a much improved 8-9-1 record this season, the Tyrone Golden Eagles made the playoffs for the first time in four years but sadly made a semifinal-round exit with a 3-1 loss to the Bellefonte Raiders.
Being the fourth seed meant they had to face the number one seed Bellefonte Red Raiders in the opening round.
This marked the 3rd meeting of the two schools this season. Bellefonte won the first match on August 29 by just a single goal, 2-1. In their second meeting at Bellefonte, the Red Raiders defeated Tyrone 5-1.
The Golden Eagles had a sendoff on October 24th, with a great fan turnout to wish the team good luck. The fans in attendance made signs and cheered as the bus made its way up to Bellefonte for the Eagles’ biggest game of the season.
The match kicked off at 7:30 and the teams seemed evenly matched as they stuck with each other offensively and defensively.
It remained this way for around half of the first half until Bellefonte got on the board first around the 23 minute mark.
The Red Raiders proceeded to extend their lead to 2-0 in the final minutes of the half.
The second half started off pretty evenly as well with some back-and-forth action until the Red Raiders netted another shot into the back of the net around the midway point of the half.
This extended Bellefonte’s lead to 3-0 and a comeback too far out of reach for the Eagles to achieve.
The Eagles did get themselves on the board and avoided the shutout with a Ned Smearman goal, but they couldn’t build any momentum to complete the comeback.
Overall, the Eagles played a good game and fought with everything they had as they were the clear underdogs based on the teams’ records.
Hollidaysburg defeated Central Mountain 1-0 moving on to play the Red Raiders in the district championship.
Bellefonte got the job done against Hollidaysburg taking home the championship with a 3-2 victory.
Although Tyrone wasn’t the team hoisting that trophy, the future of the program looks bright as the team will have another year under their belts playing together to build more chemistry with the hopes of making a run in playoffs next year.
Sadly, seniors Jake Baker and Nate Ellenberger played the final game of their high school careers.
“It was an emotional game for everyone, especially for the seniors since it was our last,” Baker said.
These seniors have been great contributors to the team all season long and a big reason why the team was able to make it this far and have a relatively successful season even if it didn’t end in the way they would’ve liked it to.
To commemorate this season, each player was asked to share some words to describe their season.
Seniors
“I’m glad I got to experience this season with my teammates and coaches who have been there since the beginning.” – Jake Baker
“I was extremely grateful to have the opportunity to play in the playoffs this season, and even if the result wasn’t what we wanted, I am still proud of this team.” – Nate Ellenberger
Juniors:
“Although it was a season of missed opportunities, a lot of potential for the future shinned bright but fell short at the finish line.” – Devon Nardelli
“This season was a major improvement from my previous two seasons on varsity. I’m very excited for what next year has in store for us.” – Ethan Donofrio
“Everyone has improved greatly since last season. We showed our progression by how we played every single game by leaving all of the energy we had on the field until the final whistle.” – Rowan Moore
Sophomores:
“This season was a lot of hard work, in and out of the season, but it was also a lot of fun, especially with our seniors who played their hearts out this year to help us get into playoffs.” – Noah Gulvas
“Every season ends, but the memories and lessons remain; cherish the game and embrace the journey, for each moment is a gift.” – Ned Smearman
“Even though we experienced our ups and downs this season, we all stuck together and learned lessons that will shape us for future success in the years to come.” – Grant Miller
“It was a great first season with the team as we turned 3 wins from last year into making a great performance in the district playoffs.” – Tytus Novak
“We took it one game at a time, dialed in, and just enjoyed playing together.” – Cam Nelson
Freshman:
“No matter the ending outcome, this season was definitely the starting point for something great.” – Karter Bokulich
“I think we had a great season and we came so far with some young kids. I think next season we are going to be dominators on the field because of this young talent.” – Cameron Coffey
“With a very young team, we persevered and we have a great future ahead of us.” – Potter Myers
“This season was an overall success and our teamwork and chemistry was amazing. Next year is going to be a revenge season.” – Gavin Tuskovich
