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Barletta breezes to fourth term in Congress

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Crestwood lets off some steam in state field hockey playoff win

<p>WILLIAMSPORT &#8212; A first-round exit from the PIAA 2A playoffs wasn&#8217;t exactly how the Wyoming Seminary boys soccer team wanted their season to end.</p><p>However, the Blue Knights were facing an uphill battle at the Balls Mills Soccer Club Tuesday night, going toe-to-toe with the defending state champion, one-loss Lewisburg.</p><p>While Wyoming Seminary did control the ball early, the Green Dragons applied pressure throughout and kept the Blue Knights&#8217; possessions in their offensive end limited. A pair of first-half goals proved to be enough as Lewisburg pulled away in the final 40 minutes en route to a 4-0 victory to secure a spot in the PIAA quarterfinals against Lower Moreland on Saturday.</p><p>&#8220;They worked the ball well, they had great movement off the ball and speed,&#8221; Wyoming Seminary head coach Rev. Charles Carrick said of the District 4 champions. &#8220;The touches, (Joseph Bhangdia), I give him the man of the match. I&#8217;m proud of my guys. We had a great run, great season.&#8221;</p><p>After 15 minutes of pressure on Wyoming Seminary goal, the Green Dragons were finally able to break the 0-0 tie.</p><p>Bhangdia sent a perfect crosser to Adam Cole, who was positioned on the right side of the Sem net. The senior midfielder connected and drilled the back of the net, with just 20 minutes and two seconds remaining in the first half.</p><p>Less than 15 minutes later, Green Dragons&#8217; senior Will Brock dribbled his way open in front of the Seminary net and put one past a diving Ryan Anderson to put the Blue Knights in a 2-0 hole heading into the break.</p><p>&#8220;We had to deal with their speed,&#8221; Carrick said of Seminary&#8217;s half-time adjustments. &#8220;We had to give up space and we couldn&#8217;t press them, we couldn&#8217;t press their backs. We had to draw back and concede that space. It worked a little bit better and everything, but still, they outmached us on speed and they were good in the air with their size.&#8221;</p><p>Things didn&#8217;t get much easier for the Blue Knights as Bhangdia capitalized on a pair of penalty kicks early on in the second half. In the span on 15 minutes the senior put his team up 4-0, with 26:37 remaining in regulation.</p><p>Down by four goals, Seminary started to get some opportunities with the ball, however, Lewisburg did a good job shutting the Blue Knights down the closer they got to the net.</p><p>&#8220;Defensive side, they played well,&#8221; Carrick said of the opponent. &#8220;They trapped well, but then they also countered really well, and moved it to the open space.&#8221;</p><p>While the Blue Knights endured a sour ending to their season, there was plenty Carrick was happy about, in the grander scheme. Tuesday marked the third straight season with an appearance in states.</p><p>&#8220;It&#8217;s a little bitter (tonight), but it&#8217;s more sweet, especially for these seniors. A great group of kids,&#8221; Carrick said when looking back on the campaign. &#8220;They were a joy to coach, just a lot of fun. They had fun playing next to each other. For those guys, we always talked about selfless play wins the day and these guys lived it, did some good stuff.</p><p>&#8220;For some of the seniors, they leave three times in states, two district championships, one runner-up. I&#8217;m proud of them. Very, very proud of them,&#8221; he said.</p><p style="text-align: center;"><strong>PIAA 2A BOYS SOCCER FIRST ROUND</strong></p><p style="text-align: center;"><strong>Lewisburg 4, Wyoming Seminary 0</strong></p><p><strong>Wyoming Seminary`0`0`&#8212;`0</strong></p><p><strong>Lewisburg`2`2`&#8212;`4</strong></p><p><strong>First half &#8212;</strong> 1. LEW, Adam Cole (Joseph Bhangdia), 20:02; 2. LEW, Will Brock, 5:17. <strong>Second half &#8212;</strong> 3. LEW, Bhangdia (penalty kick), 38:52; 4. LEW, Bhangdia (penalty kick), 26:37.</p><p><strong>Shots &#8212;</strong> WS 2; LEW 17. <strong>Saves &#8212;</strong> WS 2 (Ryan Anderson); LEW 2 (Ryan Ehmann). <strong>Corner kicks &#8212;</strong> WS 3; LEW 2.</p><style>
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<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By DJ Eberle</p><p>djeberle@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach DJ Eberle at 570-991-6398 or on Twitter @ByDJEberle</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Boys Soccer: Wyoming Seminary’s season ends with first-round loss to Lewisburg