skip navigation

Soccer Cats Take Down Shaker Heights, 5-1; Move on to Regional Final

By Eddie Dwyer, 11/03/16, 9:45AM EDT

Share

Saint Ignatius Soccer is one victory away from returning to the State Final Four after defeating Shaker Heights, 5-1, in Wednesday night's Regional Semifinal matchup at Brush High School

By Mr. Eddie Dwyer, Copyright Credit November 2016

Lyndhurst, Ohio - Coach Mike McLaughlin's state and nationally acclaimed Soccer Program has enjoyed a wealth of success against its next opponent, Massillon Jackson, especially in the postseason.

Saturday at high noon, the state's and nation's top-ranked Wildcats will look to add another deposit in that winning account when they face the Jackson Polar Bears in an OHSAA Division I Regional Championship match on the pitch at Nordonia High School.

The Soccer Cats, unleashing their pressure against a veteran Shaker Heights team on Wednesday night, earned the right to face Jackson in another elite-eight matchup by defeating the Shaker Raiders, 5-1, in a Regional Semifinal at the atmosphere-rich athletic facility on the campus of Brush High School.

Jackson, whose Varsity Football Team will be playing Saint Ignatius in an OHSAA Regional Quarterfinal Playoff Game on Byers Field Friday night, advanced to another encounter with the Soccer Cats by eliminating Hudson, 3-2 in overtime, during Wednesday's other Regional Semifinal action throughout the state.

Coach McLaughlin's Cats, ranked No. 1 in the state by the Ohio Scholastic Soccer Coaches Association and the top-ranked team nationally in USA Today's Super 25, now stand 18-0-2 and carry an unbeaten streak of 56 consecutive matches.

The two-time defending and record seven-time State Champion Soccer Cats are seeking what would be an OHSAA record of three consecutive Boys State Soccer Championships.

Shaker Heights, which stayed with the Soccer Cats for the first 33 minutes before Saint Ignatius took a 2-0 lead into the halftime break, closed its highly successful season at 18-2-0. The Raiders' only other setback this fall was to Brunswick, 2-1.

No one knows the 2016 Jackson Soccer Program better than Saint Ignatius' senior forward Adam Collins, who came up with two goals on Wednesday night.

"I grew up there," said Collins of the Stark County area school that resides on Fulton Drive N.W., in Massillon. "I moved in the eighth grade so I know all of those players. Their Head Coach was my coach growing up, so it will be a little personal on Saturday."

Collins, known as A.C. to his coaches and teammates at Saint Ignatius, along with freshman forward Everett Shorey, took advantage of the opportunity Coach McLaughlin gave them on Wednesday night, as they accounted for the first two goals of the match, both coming off assists from All-American senior forward/captain Steve Milhoan, the reigning Gatorade Ohio Player of the Year and an Xavier University recruit.

Leading, 2-0, the Soccer Cats, champions of the Parma District, scored an own goal with just 19 seconds gone in the second half. In what is a Saint Ignatius Soccer tradition, own goals are awarded to the Wildcats' outstanding Head Junior Varsity Coach, Mr. Jim Brennan '85. Gritty and gifted senior defense Tommy Patacca was awarded with the assist on the own goal.

Four minutes and 10 seconds later, Collins beat the goalkeeper to the right corner of the net for a 4-0 lead and, with 14 minutes and 44 seconds remaining to be played, Cats senior midfield Thomas Hogan made it a 5-0 match.

Shaker Heights, the Mentor District Champion, got on the scoreboard with 5 minutes left off an authoritative goal from 25 yards out by senior forward/captain Billy Seguin.

Wednesday night marked the 16th time that the Soccer Cats played in a Regional Semifinal, all under Coach McLaughlin '85, and they stand 12-4 at that level of competition.

In a whatever helps the team approach, Saint Ignatius' talented and classy senior midfield Johne Vrablic, aka Mr. Versatility, played up top for the Soccer Cats on Wednesday night.

"Confidence is the assurance that we are good," said Coach Brennan in his legendary pre-match speech that he so elegantly offers during the program's annual postseason runs.

Confidence with class is just one of the many special traits that a Mike McLaughlin-coached team exudes.