HS: Fall SIMA FAB 50, Sept. 22

by Sheldon Shealer

September 22, 2015

TOP STORY: Even after his team suffered a defeat Saturday evening, Haverford School coach Bill Brady managed a smile, pointed toward the field and said, "If you ever needed an endorsement for high school soccer, this was it."

For the previous two hours, Haverford School and top-ranked St. Benedict's Prep (Newark, N.J.) battled before a capacity crowd at Cabrini College. St. Benedict's speed of play and technical ability were rewarded with a 2-0 victory that was in doubt until the final seconds of the match. St. Benedict's controlled most of the action with Monmouth commit Johnny Antunes, the best player on the field, scoring a first-half goal for a 1-0 lead. The Gray Bees clung to that lead under late pressure from Haverford School. After St. Benedict's keeper Andres Medina made a point-blank save with a minute left, the Gray Bees went on the counter, and with numbers in their favor, Mickey George pulled the keeper out of net and slid a pass to Fabio DeSousa for an easy tap-in in the final 30 seconds to seal the result.

When the whistle ending play sounded, St. Benedict's players celebrated to the beat of drums from the program's followers, while Haverford School's players slumped to the ground -- there would be no upset this year. Last year, Haverford School stunned St. Benedict's, handing the team its only loss in what would be a national title-winning season.

Saturday's clash likely featured more NCAA Division I-bound players on the field at one time than any traditional high school match in the country this fall. Haverford has three committed seniors on a roster with 15 underclassmen, some already in the recruiting process. Meanwhile, St. Benedict's features 20 seniors, with likely at least six who will go on to Division I programs. The Gray Bees are starting to draw comparisons to the school's 2011 team that went 24-0 and was led by Christian Hernandez, who signed with the MLS Philadelphia Union out of high school, and Christiano Francois, who left Maryland early to sign with MLS and is now playing professionally in Portugal.

St. Benedict's coach Jim Wandling said Saturday's result was one major step toward the team's ultimate goal -- a perfect season and a 10th national title. Antunes echoed that, adding that Haverford was the best all-around team they have faced this year. The Gray Bees are now 6-0 with wins over teams from six states.

The Fords are 6-2 with its setbacks to Prep No. 1 Berkshire School (Sheffield, Mass.) and SIMA FAB 50 No. 1 St. Benedict's. For Brady, a former college coach, there was no shame in the loss because the focus remains on making history. Haverford School now turns its attention to league play where the team will attempt to become the first program in the more than 100 years of Inter-Ac high school soccer play to win four straight league titles.

BIG MOVERS: BOYS: Louisville Trinity (Louisville, Ky.). Trinity moved up 16 spots to No. 30 this week following a 2-0 win over Salesianum (Wilmington, Del.) in a battle of perennial state title challengers. GIRLS: Somers (Somers, N.Y.). Somers used a penalty kick to slip past Immaculate Heart Academy (Township of Washington, N.J.) 1-0 in a battle of SIMA FAB 50-ranked teams. Somers has been ranked No. 2 in New York all season by TopDrawerSoccer, and this interstate victory moved the team from No. 26 to No. 17 in this week's SIMA FAB 50.

NEWCOMERS: BOYS: No. 21 Dublin Jerome (Dublin, Ohio), No. 26 Lee's Summit West (Lee's Summit, Mo.), No. 27 Apex (Apex, N.C.), No. 31 Olathe East (Olathe, Kan.), No. 34 Conestoga (Berwyn, Pa.), No. 38 Libertyville (Libertyville, Ill.), No. 40 Washburn Rural (Topeka, Kan.), No. 41 Cumberland Valley (Mechanicsburg, Pa.), No. 42 Arlington (LaGrangeville, N.Y.), No. 43 Forest Hills Central (Grand Rapids, Mich.), No. 44 Suffield (West Suffield, Conn.), No. 45 Schaumburg (Schamuburg, Ill.), No. 46 Father Judge (Philadelphia, Pa.), No. 48 North St. Paul (St. Paul, Minn.), No. 49 John Burroughs (St. Louis, Mo.) and No. 50 Carmel (Carmel, Ind.). GIRLS: No. 36 Weber (Pleasant View, Utah), No. 44 Dublin Jerome (Dublin, Ohio) and No. 50 Commack (Commack, N.Y.).