East Juniata battled tough but falls in PIAAs

By Kenny Varner Jr.
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Updated: November 10, 2021

Tulpehocken 1, East Juniata 0
SELINSGROVE – Turnovers in the second half doomed the East Juniata Tigers as their season unfortunately has come to a close in a loss to the Tulpehocken Trojans 1-0 during the first round of the Class A boys soccer State playoff Tuesday evening at Selinsgrove high school.
East Juniata came into the game as the District 4 champions while the Trojans were the runner ups in District 3.
Both teams showed why they each made it to the championship games in their respective Districts. The Tigers were more of a slowly but surely brand of soccer where they were looking for the open man.
While Tulpehocken was looking to run and create an explosive offense. And very early on in the first half, both teams were showcasing their respective offenses and created many opportunities to get on the scoreboard.
But it would only be the Trojans who would take advantage of their chances as East Juniata was called for tripping which gave Tulpehocken an indirect kick opportunity where Gael Velazquez launched a deep pass towards the East Juniata net where everyone was crowding the box looking to knock the ball away. But in the end, Owen Harris managed to jump above the rest and nailed a header to the back of the net to bring the only goal of the evening.
However in the second half of the match, the Trojans would bring up the intensity and completely kept the East Juniata offense from getting a shot attempt in the frame. The closest East Juniata had was on a corner attempt that was stolen by the Trojans and quickly marched back down the field.
But the Tigers would continue to fight defensively as well as they were able to keep the Tulpehocken offense in check despite facing the heavy pressure from them. But just could not turn it into offense.
East Juniata ends its season at 12-7-3. Congrats to the Tigers for an incredible season.