ONEONTA, N.Y. -- Fredonia was unable to hold off Oneonta's Witman Hernandez and his teammates in a SUNYAC men's soccer semifinal Wednesday afternoon.
Hernandez struck for three straight goals in the second half and Justin Cebollero completed the scoring as the Red Dragons recorded a 4-0 win and moved on to face Cortland in the conference title game Saturday. Cortland advanced with a 1-0 win Wedneday over Buffalo State.
The Blue Devils were in the middle of a scoreless tie until Hernandez scored on his own rebound following a teammate's corner kick in the 62nd minute. He added goals in the 80th and 83rd minute to break open the game. Cebollero scored in the 87th minute to put the finishing touch on Oneonta's win.
"We played a great first half and it showed," Fredonia Head Coach
P.J. Gondek said. "It was seven to seven in shots and we hit a crossbar. Unfortunately all that energy did not lead to a goal. In the second half, we ran out of gas. I think their first goal was a bit soft but we rebounded well and could have tied it. It just wasn't enough today. The advantage of the bye for them was a factor."
Fredonia freshman goalkeeper
Ty Bentham (Columbus, Ind./Columbus North) finished with six saves while his counterpart, Ryan Wilson, made four saves to earn the shutout. Four different Blue Devils had one shot on net.
The Blue Devils fell to 11-7-2 while the Red Dragons improved to 14-5-1.
Fredonia dressed eight seniors:
Jimmy Ritchie (East Aurora, N.Y./East Aurora),
Ryan Keller (East Aurora, N.Y./East Aurora),
Brandon Butts (Schenevus, N.Y./Charlotte Valley),
Sam Greco (Lockport, N.Y./Lockport),
Brian Theuerkauf (Lancaster, N.Y./Lancaster),
Bryan Sibble (Liverpool, N.Y./Cicero-North Syracuse),
Parker Healy (East Aurora, N.Y./East Aurora), and
Sammy DeFranks (Tonawanda, N.Y./Kenmore West), while fifth-year and team co-captain
Keith Braun (East Aurora, N.Y./Iroquois) was inactive.
Healy has one season of eligibility remaining and plans to return to play in 2017. The Blue Devils, ranked No. 6 in the East Region, might also be back in 2016, if the NCAA tournament selection committee deems it next Monday.
"We'll keep our fingers crossed," said Gondek, who was retrospective nonetheless. "This team, these seniors, put Fredonia back on the map and I will be forever grateful. I could not have asked for anything more."
