Freeport boys fight through injuries to stay in playoff hunt

By: Jerin Steele
Thursday, October 3, 2024 | 11:01 AM

The phrase “next man up” is used by many teams as a rallying cry, but the Freeport boys soccer team has had to manage more bumps and bruises than most.

A total of 19 players have been in the starting lineup because of injuries forcing some shuffling around, but there’s still hope of breaking into the postseason.

The Yellowjackets are 3-4-2 and in fifth place in Section 1-2A, but they play pretty much every team that’s ahead or near them in the standings in the final few weeks of the season.

“We’ve had anywhere from one to four players out of the lineup since Week 3 of the season,” Freeport coach Brad Walker said. “We’ve been pretty beat up. We came into the season with a plan, and through 2 1/2 weeks, it was going very well. We played Armstrong (in a nonsection match) and won a very physical game 3-2 in dramatic fashion, but we came out of that game beat up and haven’t really recovered since.”

Freeport started 3-0-1, including a 3-3 tie with section rival Shady Side Academy, but went 1-5-1 in the next six. The Yellowjackets rebounded with a win over Leechburg and a nonsection victory over Greensburg Central Catholic in their last two games.

The good news for the Yellowjackets is they have games with Burrell and Highlands on the schedule, the two teams they’ll likely battle for fourth place. North Catholic and Deer Lakes — the top two teams in the section — and Valley also are remaining on the schedule.

“We certainly have to make up a little bit of ground,” Walker said. “We went through a little bit of a rough patch, which was unfortunate. We started off the season undefeated (through four games) and were one of the highest-scoring teams in the WPIAL until we ran into North Catholic and went on a little bit of a slide. Hopefully we can catch one of the teams in front of us. It’s pretty much a three-team race for fourth place between Burrell, Highlands and us.”

Senior Angelo Porco leads the team in scoring. He had both goals in the win over Greensburg Central Catholic and a hat trick against Leechburg.

Sophomore Xavier DeWitt and junior Eli Hassler have anchored the defense. Sophomore Judah Thompson is the starting keeper, and Ryan Sutara is a key player in the midfield.

Though injuries may have taken out some more experienced players, it’s given a chance for Walker to see younger players in varsity action, and he likes their potential.

“With the injuries we’ve had, we’re relying on a lot of younger players,” Walker said. “We started four freshmen, three sophomores, three juniors and one senior against GCC. We’re dealing with some injuries, but we’re also looking at the younger contingent of players at this point. The players with the higher ceilings are our younger players. We’re looking for them to contribute. We beat GCC, 2-0, in a well-played soccer game, and our younger guys were a big part of that.”

Jerin Steele is a freelance writer

Tags: Freeport