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The St. Clair Saints were fully aware that the road to the OCAA men’s soccer gold medal game would not be easy.
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The unranked Saints had to beat the Humber Hawks in Friday’s semifinal game two at Acumen Stadium. Humber is not only the number one team in the province, but the highest ranked team in the country. The two-time defending OCAA champions had six comeback starters in the fourth or fifth year and that experience was demonstrated in a 5-1 win over the Saints.
“Everyone in the province of Ontario, at the college level, knows they’re good,” Saints head coach Mike Baraslievski said. “Every time you play Humber, more this year than any other, it’s probably tougher than ever.”
Humber jumped to an early lead before Carolos DaGloria scored late in the first half to cut the lead to 3-1, but the Hawks added two goals early in the second half to put the game away. The Saints now face Seneca in the bronze medal game at 1pm Saturday.
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“About an hour after the final whistle, they were fine,” Baraslievski said of his club. “The last time we got medals was in 2001, so here we go.
“We talked about that after the game. What’s done is done and let’s focus on the next one. “
Before the semifinals, three members of the men’s team were honored by the OCAA.
Goalkeeper Jonathan Rondinelli, who is a product of Riverside High School, was named the Western Division All-Star along with midfielder Evan Mendonca.
Freshman Patrick Maheux, who is a product of Villanova’s high school, was named the West Division defensive co-player of the year.
On the women’s side, goalkeeper Athena DiMario Done, who is a product of St. Joseph High School, was named West Division Star, while Head Coach Kries Geier was named West Division Coach of the Year.
Reference-windsorstar.com