It wasn't a bad state tournament by any means for District 4 this year.
The Montoursville girls won the Class AA state title, and six other D-4 schools (counting boys and girls) won at least one game in their respective PIAA tournaments. The Midd-West boys advanced to the Class AA semifinals, and the Lewisburg and Loyalsock boys both made it to the Class A quarterfinals.
But don't assume that the District 4 men were all kept from the gold, because that's just not the case. Danville graduate Ben Kettlewell is the head coach for the Susquehannock boys, who captured the Class AA state crown with a 1-0 win over Pottsgrove last weekend.
"The team was a fairly successful program before, and I guess I was able to take them a step further," says Kettlewell, who's 41-9-3 in two seasons as the Warriors head coach. "As a coach, it's rewarding to be able to see the boys kind of put into work some of your plans, your practices and the things you teach them."
Kettlewell, a 1998 Danville graduate whose parents, Paul and Jane, still live in Danville, guided Susquehannock to the state semifinals last season. The Warriors lost to Mars in that game, but they beat Mars en route to the state crown this year.
"We were a much different team from last year," Kettlewell says. "I felt we were a little bit more explosive offensively. ... Teams had a little more trouble shutting us down."
By winning the gold, Susquehannock -- which outscored its four state opponents 11-2 -- struck a blow for all of York County.
"This is the first time a York (County) team has ever won the state title," he says. "I've been getting congratulations from all the different coaches, telling us that we did them proud."
As a junior at Danville, Kettlewell won the Susquehanna Valley Conference championship. He says that he uses what he learned from long-time Danville coach Nick Kindt.
"Nick was a very good talent evaluator," he says. "It didn't matter what age you were, he put the best 11 on the field. I try to do that myself. I think that I really took that and was able to use it."
RANKINGS: Here is this year's final edition of The Daily Item District 4 Super Soccer 7 poll. Each school's league affiliation, PIAA classification, and previous ranking are listed in parentheses.
GIRLS
1. Montoursville (HAC-I, AA, 2) 24-2. The skinny: State champions. What else can you say?
2. Milton (HAC-I, AAA, 1) 17-4-1. The skinny: Gave Downingtown West all they could handle.
3. Loyalsock (HAC-II, AA, 3) 21-2-2. The skinny: First District 4 Class AA title and a win over Montoursville to boot.
4. Lewisburg (HAC-II, AA, 4) 18-3-1. The skinny: Green Dragons have enough back to make a state title run in 2009.
5. Midd-West (HAC-I, AAA, 7) 13-5-2. The skinny: With sturdy sophomore class, Mustangs will continue to grow.
6. Selinsgrove (HAC-I, AAA, 6) 13-6-1. The skinny: Gave Milton a scare in district semis.
7. Southern Columbia (HAC-III, AA, 5) 19-3. The skinny: Great season, but young Tigers stuck in a Class AA bracket that features Montoursville, Loyalsock and Lewisburg.
BOYS
1. Midd-West (HAC-I, AA, 1) 19-2-2. The skinny: Great senior class leads Mustangs to state semifinals.
2. Lewisburg (HAC-I, A, 2) 17-5-2. The skinny: Future is bright for Green Dragons.
3. Mifflinburg (HAC-I, AA, 5) 12-7-2. The skinny: Formerly woebegone Wildcats are feel-good story of the year.
4. East Juniata (TVL, A, NR). 16-7-1. The skinny: Don Troutman takes another Tigers team into state playoffs.
5. Loyalsock (HAC-II, A, 3) 20-3-1. The skinny: Nice run to state quarters.
6. Shikellamy (HAC-I, AA, 7) 10-7-2. The skinny: Scrappy Braves can play with anyone.
7. (tie) Benton (HAC-III, A, NR). 19-3. The skinny: Talented Tigers keep running into Lewisburg in playoffs.
7. Selinsgrove (HAC-I, AA, NR). 8-7-5. The skinny: Up-and-down season, but Seals were still 2-2-1 against Midd-West and Lewisburg.
n Sports reporter Todd Stanford covers high school soccer for The Daily Item. E-mail comments to tstanford@dailyitem.com.
High School Sports
Todd Stanford column on high school soccer: Danville grad strikes gold in final
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