Walsh Jesuit High School tops Dublin boys soccer to reach D-II final
Walsh Jesuit High School uses some late-game heroics in a Division II state semifinal to beat Dublin Scioto and reach the OHSAA championship.
MARENGO — Don’t ever count out the Walsh Jesuit boys soccer team.
Facing elimination Wednesday in a Division II state semifinal against Dublin Scioto, the Warriors willed themselves to a 2-1 victory.
They advanced to play New Albany (19-1) in the state final at 4 p.m. Sunday at Columbus Crew Stadium. The Eagles beat North Ridgeville 3-0 in the other semifinal.
The win for the Warriors (17-3-2) definitely came with some drama as Walsh picked itself up off the floor to score in a flurry and win.
Things were in doubt when Quinn Bunner scored off an assist from Seth Silverstein with 31:41.
The Warriors showed poise under pressure and eventually broke through to tie it with 6:49 left when Cullen O’Connor popped one in after it bounced around the box a bit.
“We’ve worked hard all season,” O’Connor said. “We knew we had it in us. We’re a second-half team. There’s no stopping us. I think our heart really carried us through.”
As if it was scripted, Bora Dastan took in the offensive third and slid a pass to Brady Catanzarite from about 12 yards out. The school’s all-time leading scorer slid it past Simon Newkirk on the right, and that’s the way it stayed.
“I trusted my guys to find me,” Catanzarite said. “I make that run across the defense as much as I can. Bora Dastan found me. I love that guy. All credit to him.
The win made it the fourth time in school history (2000-01, 2006) that both programs have made the championship game.
“I’ll take our chances with our group to come out and fight any day of the week,” Walsh coach Tony Catanzarite said. “We’ll see what happens. It’s going to be fun.”
Follow along here for in-game highlights, updates and analysis:
Walsh High School in Division II boys soccer state final, beats Scioto
The Walsh Jesuit boys soccer team is back in the state final for the first time since 2006 after a dramatic win over Dublin Scioto High School.
What an answer by the Warriors! Bora Dastan saw Brady Catanzarite streaking toward the goal and sent a perfect pass to the senior. Catanzarite answered and it’s 2-1 Walsh Jesuit with 5:29 left.
Man. You’ve got to love playoff soccer. With time ticking away, Walsh Jesuit went on an all out press against Dublin Scioto. With the ball bopping around the box, Cullen O’Conner showed poise under pressure to tie things up at one with 6:49 left.
The Fighting Irish hasn’t bunkered down in the final minutes of the game against the Warriors. In fact, they’re pushing the pace even more. It’s Dublin Scioto 1, Walsh Jesuit 0 with 8:06 left.
Freddie Marcell sent a ball into the mix from 40 yards out that got past keeper Simon Newkirk. It appeared headed for the far left corner, but a Fighting Irish defender was there to take it off the line to keep it’s 1-0 Scioto with 19:28 left.
Dublin Scioto struck first when Seth Silverstein sent a crossing pass to the middle that Quin Bunner collected. The junior two-touched it passed Quinn Anderson to make it 1-0 Fighting Irish with 31:41 remaining.
A defensive miscue near the touchline put the Warriors in a bad spot and it looked like Angel Arellano was going to capitalize. Keeper Quinn Anderson cut the angle beautifully, however, to keep it scoreless at the 37:24 mark of the second half.
We remain scoreless after the first 40 minutes of play. Here’s how play looks.
| Category | Dublin Scioto | Walsh Jesuit |
| Shots on goal | 2 | 3 |
| Saves | Simon Newkirk (3) | Quinn Anderson (2) |
| Corner kicks | 0 | 2 |
Brady Catanzarite sprinted down the left side and sent a great pass to Noah Pellegrini from about 6 yards out. It went off the side of his foot and just missed. It’s scoreless at 7:07 left in the first half.
While the Warriors have definitely amped up the pressure, Dublin Scioto’s defense has been spectacular to keep it scoreless with 24:22 left before the break. The Warriors have had two corner kicks.
It’s a fast track tonight with the rain from earlier at Marengo Highland High School. That said, the Warriors have had the best chance so far. However, the shot on frame was snared by Simon Newkirk and it remains scoreless with 33:50 left in the first half.
| Number | Name | Position |
| 00 | Simon Newkirk | GK |
| 3 | Steele Bell | D |
| 4 | Thomas Kinney | D |
| 7 | Seth Silverstein | F |
| 9 | Theo Koesters | F |
| 10 | Angel Arellano | F |
| 12 | Alex Nettles | M |
| 14 | Carson Burch | M |
| 21 | Lando Tang | M |
| 22 | Evan Spielberg | M |
| 27 | Brandon Kockentiet | D |
| Number | Name | Position |
| 1 | Quinn Anderson | GK |
| 2 | Freddie Marcell | M |
| 3 | Adam Miller | D |
| 4 | Chase Merrill | D |
| 5 | Brady Catanzarite | F |
| 7 | Jack Maher | M |
| 8 | Colin Locigno | D |
| 9 | Evan Litras | M |
| 10 | Noah Pellegrini | F |
| 13 | Andrew Conti | M |
| 14 | Jonathan Christen | D |
A look at Walsh Jesuit’s boys soccer OHSAA tournament run
| Date | Opponent | Result |
| Oct. 23 | Cleveland Max Hayes | W, 23-0 |
| Oct. 26 | Cuyahoga Falls | W, 7-0 |
| Oct. 30 | Solon | W, 3-0 |
| Nov. 3 | Wadsworth | W, 3-0 |
A look at Dublin Scioto’s boys soccer OHSAA postseason run
| Date | Opponent | Result |
| Oct. 16 | Columbus Mifflin | W, 8-0 |
| Oct. 23 | Westerville South | W, 4-0 |
| Oct. 30 | Thomas Worthington | W, 4-0 |
| Nov. 3 | Westerville Central | W, 2-1 |
OHSAA boys soccer history for Walsh Jesuit, Dublin Scioto
The Warriors are making their 11th trip to the state semifinal and first since 2010. They have state titles in 1982, 1990, 1991, 2000 and 2006.
Walsh finished state runner-up in 1986-87 and 2000-01.
This is the Irish’s first trip to the semifinals.
Who to watch for Walsh Jesuit
Brady Catanzarite is the school’s all-time leading scorer and has 21 goals and 23 assists this season. Andrew Conti (16, 18), Evan Litras (20, 9), Freddie Marcell (16, 6), Noah Pellegrini (11, 9), Cullen O’Connor (7, 2), Bora Dastan (5, 6) and Josh Novak (4, 4) are fantastic as well.
Quinn Anderson has a school record 34 shutouts and hasn’t been scored on in the last eight games.
Who to watch for Dublin Scioto
The Irish have prolific scorers in Angel Arellano (15 goals, 6 assists) and can go to Theo Koesters (13, 4), Seth Silverstein (8, 3), Carson Burch (6, 4) and Evan Spielberg (2, 6).
Contact Brad Bournival at bbournival@gannett.com and follow him on Twitter at @bbournival.
