Top-seeded Hilton (No. 5 NYSSWA) takes on Edison Tech while Rush-Henrietta and Penfield will battle for the third time this season. Spots in the Section V Class AA final are for the taking. Here’s the breakdown:
No. 1 seed HILTON CADETS (13-2-2/Monroe County Division I) vs. No. 4 seed EDISON TECH INVENTORS (13-2-2/RCAC)
How they got here: Hilton defeated No. 8 seed Webster Thomas, 2-0 in the quarterfinals. Edison came from behind to knock off No. 5 seed Webster Schroeder, 2-1.
Last time they met: Then No. 8 seed Hilton defeated No. 9 seed Edison/Monroe, 7-0 in the opening round of the 2015 Class AA playoffs. That Cadet squad went on to beat top-seeded Schroeder in the quarterfinals, fourth-seeded Churchville-Chili in the semifinals and No. 6 seed Fairport to take the Section V title before advancing to the NYS Class AA semifinals.
Names to know: Hilton — Hussian Ali (four goals, three assists), Justin Arilotta (10 goals, five assists), Charles Barker (one goal, four assists), Tom Callery (four goals, one assist), Andrew Cavuoto (three goals), Jack Gombatto (one goal, one assist), Joey Gombatto (113 saves, 9 goals allowed), Noah Malta (two goals, four assists), Colden Philps (two assists) and Joshua Ranke (two goals, four assists).
10’ Justin Arilotta is on the finishing end of a Tom Callery free kick. @HiltonCadets 1-0 pic.twitter.com/zXcSPZNIxt
— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) October 20, 2018
Edison — Rey Arizmendi (nine goals, 16 assists), Julian Cotto (six goals, one assist), Sumani Hasssani (40 saves, 25 goals allowed), Malik Musa (11 goals, seven assists), Punjan Rai (three goals), Esam Saleh (four goals, four assists), Mabrook Saleh (21 goals, 16 assists) and Jemal Suleman (five goals, one assist).
62’ Malik Musa takes advantage of a second chance opportunity to give Edison a 2-1 lead. Class AA quarterfinals pic.twitter.com/UJ0gUADZL4
— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) October 19, 2018
Coaches: Mike Ellicott (Hilton), A.J. Maio (Edison Tech).
History 101: Hilton advanced to the 2017 Section V Class AA championship before falling to eventual NYS champion, McQuaid 2-1. The Cadets were the only team to score against McQuaid in six postseason games. Edison’s win over Schroeder was the program’s first postseason triumph since a 2-1 victory over Gates-Chili in the opening round of the 2014 AA tournament.
VIEW MORE CHRIS ROACH PHOTOS HERE.
What they’re saying: Mike Ellicott – “Edison is going to be an incredible game. They are such a fun team to watch. They’ve got some flair. We were really, really impressed with the way they attack. This is an unknown entity.”
A.J. Maio – “Taking it one game at a time. We know we have to beat great teams to advance and are up to the challenge.
A 5 PM kickoff is scheduled Thursday at Spencerport.
No. 6 seed RUSH-HENRIETTA ROYAL COMETS (8-7-2/Monroe County Division I) vs. No. 7 seed PENFIELD PATRIOTS (7-9-0/Monroe County Division I)
How they got here: Rush-Henrietta beat Gates-Chili, 3-0 in the opening round and Fairport, 1-0 in the quarterfinals. Penfield edged Victor 3-2 in overtime and rallied to beat No. 2 seed McQuaid in overtime, 3-2.
Season series: Rush-Henrietta took both meetings between the divisional rivals by identical scores of 2-nil.
Names to know: Rush-Henrietta — Hunter Kassel (four goals, three assists), Zack Koops (two goals, one assist), Cory Meintel (three goals, three assists), Jason Pike (four assists), Curtis Rowe (six goals, three assists), Ethan Scheuer (64 saves, eight goals allowed), Billy Urbanski (one assist).
65’ Curtis Rowe runs down a Jason Pike lead and gives Rush-Henrietta a 3-0 lead. pic.twitter.com/XOUl8a26za
— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) October 16, 2018
Penfield — Milton Birmajer (two goals, four assists), Tai Little (two goals, two assists), Joe McCusker (three goals), Shane McMillan (two goals), Tahj Mounnarat (one goal, one assist), Nathan Murray (52 saves, 12 goals allowed), Connor Thurston (two assists), Jackson Vogt (four goals, five assists), Joe Vogt (four goals, one assist) and Mark Zilist (two goals, one assist).
Coaches: Jake Falci (Rush-Henrietta), John Cotsonas (Penfield).
History 101: R-H is making its third straight trip to semifinals and second under Falci. Penfield is making its first trip to the semifinals since 2014.
What they’re saying: Jake Falci — “The team’s mindset is focused on winning this championship. There’s really no other reason to go play these games. We practiced and played really well last week. We have to follow that up with focused and competitive training these next couple of days and our best performance of the year on Thursday. I’m happy with our attitude to keep trying to improve on things this late into the year, I’m happy that our kids are putting a priority on our team culture, and I like the way our team is responding to success and adversity during play. We need to have our best week so far to build confidence and belief that we can get all the way to the finish line.”
Jon Cotsonas — “We know each other,” Cotsonas told Jeff Diveronica on the most recent Connors & Ferris HS Sports Show. “Jake knows what we do. We know what they do. We know their personnel. They know our personnel. It’s going to come down to making someone make a mistake.”
A 7:30 PM kickoff is scheduled Thursday at Spencerport High School.
Leave a Reply