On to the Finals: Providence Wins!

Four different players scored for Providence Christian Academy, with two of the goals coming in the game's first five minutes of play, as the Stars beat Pace Academy for the second time this season and advanced to the GHSA Class A state championship game. Despite playing on Pace’s home field, Providence controlled the contest from the outset.

“We lost our last regular season game to Paideia, which cost us home-field advantage in the playoffs. So we’ve been on the road quite a bit, and we’re used to it, “ said head coach Todd Henry. “The boys have worked hard, and they’re playing their best soccer right now.”

Junior forward Caleb McQuaig scored the first goal on an assist from Will Lowndes just four minutes into the contest. Lowndes sent the ball long and McQuaig broke free, then beat one defender and launched a shot from outside of the box. The ball was deflected slightly by Pace goalkeeper Simon Carter but found its way into the back of the net. “I just tried to keep it low and hard, like we’ve worked on in practice,” said McQuaig. 

Sophomore midfielder Ted Perry scored the second goal just moments later, giving the Stars a commanding 2-0 lead before Pace even had a chance to find its rhythm.  

The third goal of the opening half came at the 12:45 mark, as center fullback Matt McGlamery lined up at the offensive end of the field and scored off a throw-in by Brent Hansen. Pace defenders were unable to clear the ball as it landed in traffic in the middle of the penalty box, and McGlamery put a clean header on it, re-directing the ball into the upper right corner of the goal. Hansen was a weapon for the Stars all game long with his ability to throw the ball into the box from just about anywhere across the midfield line.

At halftime Pace assistant coach Kevin Nutting implored his team to take pride, re-group and come out strong in the second half, focused on getting the first goal. But Providence had other ideas, and just 82 seconds into the half, senior Reed Spencer broke free on the right side and scored to give the Stars a 4-0 lead, which proved to be insurmountable.

The Knights changed their alignment after that and moved junior midfielder Ricardo Goellnicht to the front line, hoping to put more pressure on Providence. The move resulted in a goal for Pace at the 26 minute mark. Junior midfielder Andrew Harton scored from just outside of the box on a low driving shot that hit the left post and ricocheted into the goal.

McGlamery had a dominant game on the defensive line for Providence, limiting Pace to very few scoring opportunities in the contest. His teammate, McQuaig, left the game with a foot injury just before halftime and did not re-enter the contest, but indicated afterword that he should be ready to play in the final this Saturday, May 14.

The Stars will take on Walker, which won the other semifinal over Paideia 5-4 on penalty kicks (after regulation play ended in a 1-1 tie.)