FC Motown wins their 4th NPSL Keystone Conference Championship in shootouts
FC Motown STA Roster
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July 21, 2022
Montclair State University was the site for this year's NPSL Keystone Conference championship. Both West Chester United and FC Motown had their sights on the prize. Every previous game between these two teams offered up plenty of drama on and off the field, so it promised to be a blockbuster game, and it most definitely lived up to expectations
Motown was temporarily led by Coach Heitmann and Weaver, assisted by Irwin and McClintock. West Chester started the game strong with energy and possession without threatening the goal of FC Motown. Outstanding defense was being played on both sides, and neither side could break the deadlock early.
Motown made an early sub and brought NJAC all-star Franco Catania into the game on minute 27. Catania got involved in the attack four minutes after his entry. Cordeiro clipped a ball into Fala who headed into the path of Catania only to see his effort saved. He was not to be halted though, and in minute 45 Catania picked up a loose ball by the PK spot which had pinged around off attempts by Fala, Holland, and Peterson. Catania then took a touch and calmly slotted past two West Chester players on the line and the advancing GK. Motown went up by one going into the break.
The second half was just as competitive as the first. A well-worked pattern of play from West Chester involving Coron and Bachstein was finished off on the weak side by Ryan Jammes in the ‘68 to tie the match. Each side would have opportunities to not send it into extra time, but stellar defense and great goalkeeping kept the match tied. Ninety minutes was not enough and another thirty minutes were set to be played. A penalty on Motown inside the box awarded West Chester an opportunity at a penalty kick. Dominick Bachstein would successfully convert the penalty try and put his squad up 2-1 in ‘92.
Motown would not go down that easy. In the ‘94, Ben Assane and Motown captain Danny Cordeiro hunted the ball back deep in West Chester territory. Assane stripped the ball and burst forward before sliding the ball to Cordeiro who showed great composure and finesse to maneuver his way through defenders and sneak the ball right past the outstretched arms of West Chester's goalkeeper. The equalizer by Cordeiro had the match at 2-2, with 26 minutes left. We had a tied match at the end of the extra 30 minutes, and a penalty shoot-out was set to happen.
An incredible match was played, but the NPSL Keystone Conference champion would be decided on penalty kicks. West Chester won the coin toss and would go first. That put David Greczek in goal for Motown. On West Chester’s first attempt, Greczek dove to his left and just blocked the shot with his outstretched arms. Motown would successfully convert their first attempt by Joe Fala, and Greczek saved the next West Chester shot in similar fashion to the first. FC Motown also made their second (Hermanus Achterkamp) and they could practically see the trophy in their hands. Samuel Nii Ashitey scored #3 and Ben Assane stepped up to hammer home the PK that gave FC Motown their fourth NPSL Keystone Conference championship. Assane and the rest of the squad ran over to the loyal Motown fans and celebrated with them.
Motown finally broke their curse after being knocked out in their last five national competitions in penalty kicks. Special mention to David Greczek and the Motown GK crew, who stood true in shootouts and put the squad in a position to win.
Motown co-owner Dan Korsoen had this to say after Motown won the game in shootouts “It was a classic game that you expect when you play West Chester. Back and forth with high quality soccer. We haven’t been successful in shootouts historically, but Dave Greczek willed this team into the next round.”
Motown’s next match will be this Wednesday at Montclair State University vs New York Shockers. This will be the North East Semifinals. We need all the support we can get, so please come out this Wednesday at 7:30pm to cheer on FC Motown in their next playoff match.