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Mount Pleasant’s Braden Heiser falls to the ground as Charleroi’s Bryce Large takes control of the ball on Monday, Sept. 27, 2021, at Charleroi High School.
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PIAA boys soccer playoffs: Game-winner sends Charleroi to Class 1A finals

Post-Gazette file photo

PIAA boys soccer playoffs: Game-winner sends Charleroi to Class 1A finals

Charleroi had a lot to play for against Bentworth when the two teams met on Tuesday at Peters Township.

It wasn’t just that there was a berth in the state finals on the line. It was that the Bearcats had broken up the Cougars perfect season at Highmark Stadium in the WPIAL Class 1A championship game and kept them from taking home the first soccer title in school history.

As it turns out, they’ll have an even bigger prize on the line the next time they step onto the pitch.

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Bryce Large scored the game-winning goal with 25 seconds remaining in regulation as Charleroi (22-1-0) earned their first-ever berth in the PIAA Class 1A finals with a 2-1 victory against the Bearcats (20-3-0) at Peters Township.

Belle Vernon’s student section showed up ready to be loud for their matchup against Thomas Jefferson, Friday, Sept. 22nd, 2023, at Belle Vernon High School.
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“It’s so good to get some revenge,” Large said. “We knew what we were coming into, we were locked in. They’re a great team and I’m glad we were able to work together the way we did.”

All three matches Bentworth lost this season were to Charleroi.

Arlo McIntyre gave Charleroi a 1-0 lead when he slammed a loose ball past Bentworth goalkeeper D.J. Hays with 6:06 remaining in the first half. But Bearcats striker Ryan Colbert was awarded a penalty kick when he was tackled from behind just as he reached the top-left of the box and was able to knot it at 1-1 with 14:12 remaining in regulation.

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Class 4A

Central Bucks South 1, Norwin 0: The Knights (17-6-1) went further than any Norwin team ever had, won three of their last five matches in shootouts including the WPIAL championship against North Allegheny but came up short in the state semifinals. The Titans (19-5-1), who beat the Tigers in the quarterfinals, opened the scoring in the 15th minute when Nate MacLeod was credited with a ball that deflected off a Norwin defender and into the net past Knights all-WPIAL goalkeeper Anthony Scalise for the only goal of the match, which was played at Chambersburg High School.

Class 2A

Quaker Valley 1, Central Columbia 0: It’s an odd-numbered year, so the Quakers are headed back to the PIAA Class 2A championship match for the first time since 2021 and the third time in the last five years. Quaker Valley won state titles in 2019 and 2021. Jack Karwoski scored the only goal of the match off a corner kick from Nick Allan with 15 minutes remaining in regulation and the Quakers staved off a late Blue Jays comeback attempt to pull out the victory at Mansion Park Stadium in Altoona.

First Published: November 15, 2023, 3:16 a.m.

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Mount Pleasant’s Braden Heiser falls to the ground as Charleroi’s Bryce Large takes control of the ball on Monday, Sept. 27, 2021, at Charleroi High School.  (Post-Gazette file photo)
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