Cherry Valley-Springfield’s boys’ varsity soccer wraps up at Sectional IV Class D Finals

By LISA HERSHEY • Special to www.AllOTSEGO.com

Cherry Valley-Springfield’s boys’ varsity soccer season ended Saturday after a string of upsets took them to the Section IV Class D Finals.

The team started the season with some inconsistent play which included an overtime loss to the combined team Milford/Laurens in the Tri-Valley Semifinals. Lead by Coach Jennifer Moore, Cherry Valley-Springfield rallied in sectionals, upsetting fifth-seed Margaretville 4-3 on October 22, in Cherry Valley.

The game was competitive from start to finish, with many shots fired at Cherry Valley-Springfield goalie Gavin Valenta throughout 80 minutes of play. Cherry Valley’s Allan Parker scored early with an assist from Will Heinrich and a second goal by Oskar Webster from the outside in the first 20 minutes. Margaretville retaliated with three goals, moving ahead to take the game to 3-2. Will Heinrich drove through the Margaretville defense resulting in a defensive penalty in the goalbox, then took the opportunity to find the back of the net to tie the score (3-3).

Allan Parker made what would be the game-winning goal In the final nine minutes of the second half with an assist from Will Heinrich, lofting the ball into the upper left-hand corner. On defense Joey Presley and Kyle France relentlessly cut off multiple attacks for both sides eliminating multiple opportunities for Margaretville to score into the final minutes winning the game for Cherry Valley-Springfield.

Cherry Valley-Springfield advanced to the semifinals against number one seed Marathon on Thursday in Oneonta at the Wright National Soccer Campus. CV-Sprigfield’s Allan Parker scored early from one of many game-changing passing sequences initiated by Dylan Huff from the midfield.

A second goal early in the first half by Oskar Webster assisted by Will Heinrich temporarily put Marathon on its heels, but they came back hard with a goal late in the second half. CV-Springfield’s Will Heinrich was quick to set the tone with a hard shot to the back of the net before the half leaving the score a 3-1. In the second half CV-Springfield goalie Gavin Valenta continued to deflect multiple shots fired with the help of a goal line clearance by Bryden Houk. Will Heinrich closed the game with a final goal leaving the score 4-1.

The next day, though, CV-Springfield fell to South Kortright 5-1 in a hard-fought game, with freshman Kris Kade scoring a goal in the first half. CV-Springfield closed out the season with handshakes for South Kortright, wishing them good luck representing Section 4 as they advance to Regionals.

“From the very start in preseason these boys were respectful, focused and eager to play,” said Coach Jennifer Moore as she summarized the season. “Not a large group but a great group! The boys always carried themselves with pride and dignity.”

“From the start the boys were champions, they identified themselves as winners regardless of the score,” she enthused. “They were always committed to being better than they were the day before! That made all the difference.”