Kemmerley’s OT goal carries Conestoga past Owen J. Roberts, into district semifinals

BERWYN >> In a defensive battle, one chance is all it takes. The problem was, that chance wasn’t coming for Conestoga or Owen J. Roberts in regulation. It finally came in the early moments of the first overtime, as Keira Kemmerley scored to send the top-seeded Pioneers to a 1-0 victory over the Wildcats in the quarterfinals of the District 1 Class 4A Girls Soccer Tournament on a beautiful fall Saturday afternoon at Teamer Field.

Conestoga (17-1-2) moves into the semifinals, where they will host fifth-seeded Neshaminy on Tuesday.

“Everyone is super excited,” said Conestoga coach Deane Mariotti. “Going to the next round guarantees a trip to States, where the girls want to be. The girls have high expectations for themselves, but they’ve been doing a really good job of taking one game at a time. I think they are mentally prepared and technically sound and they work really well together.”

“I think we played all so well together,” said Kemmerley. “I think out of this whole season and postseason, this definitely has been our best game. We worked our butts off and worked hard for each other.”

It was a game where scoring opportunities were hard to find. Both defenses were well organized and hard to break down. There were 10 shots and five saves in total.

“It’s a game that should’ve been played in the semifinals,” said Owen J. Roberts coach Joe Margusity. “We were injured early in the season and took three, now four, overtime losses. But, Conestoga is a great team. We did what we could against them.”

The eighth-seeded Wildcats (16-5) had their best chance when, off a corner kick, Meryn Primanti’s header went just over the top.

The Pioneers came within inches of taking the lead with almost two minutes left. They earned a free kick following a foul about 30 yards out. Mia Galaro stepped up and hit a well-struck shot that hit the underside of the bar and bounced down. The follow up header from Amelie Stewart was easily handled by goalie Colby Wasson.

The remaining time ticked off, so it was off to overtime. The Pioneers started to slowly own more of the territorial play, which they kept into the extra session. They held the Wildcats for most of the OT and they ended it a little more than 2:30 in.

Click HERE to read the full article.

Conestoga’s Keira Kemmerley carries the ball through the midfield as Owen J. Roberts’ Sabrina Marks defends during a District 1-4A quarterfinal Saturday. (Austin Hertzog – MediaNews Group)