Shawnee knows what it feels like to advance to a South Jersey Coaches’ Cup final and lose in penalty kicks.
But after Saturday’s matchup against St. Augustine, the Renegades now know what it feels like to advance to a final and win.
Top-seeded Shawnee, ranked No. 16 in the NJ.com Top 20, stunned second-seeded St. Augustine, ranked No. 4, with a 4-3 shootout victory to win its first South Jersey Coaches’ Cup title since 2006. It was the Renegades’ 13th-overall title since 1975 and the first time playing in the final since losing to Haddon Township in a shootout in 2022.
St. Augustine, which lost its first game of the season, was looking for its third title and first since 2018.
“It means a ton, honestly. We were here a couple of years ago and lost it in PKs, and that fuel I think has driven a lot of the guys who are in this group because they were in that game,” Shawnee coach Ryan Franks said. “We‘ve got a lot of guys who have been on the team for multiple years and felt the sting of that. I think that drove them to work in the offseason, it drove them to work in the summer, it drove them to come back here and win it, not just for the group we have here tonight, but for the alumni that have come close the last couple years and not quite gotten over the hump.
“It‘s just such a privilege I think for us as a group to represent Medford soccer and Shawnee and our community, and obviously it’s a rich history so to add another one onto the trophy case is awesome.”
The game went to penalty kicks after two 10-minute overtime periods weren‘t enough to snap a 1-1 tie. It was 3-3 after the first round, and both Shawnee goalie Clark Managan and St. Augustine goalie Matt Carr made saves to start the second round. The Renegades‘ Connor Winters scored and Mangan made a save on the Hermits’ seventh shooter to give Shawnee the victory.
“I was ready, I was ready, I was excited,” Mangan said. “Coach Franks always says whether we win it in regular time, or we win it in overtime, or whether we win it in PKs, we‘re walking out of here with a trophy and that’s how it went.”
Aiden Santamaria scored Shawnee’s goal in the 36th minute to give the Renegades the 1-0 lead at halftime. St. Augustine battled back in the second half and Bernie Rutkowski scored his third goal of the season in the 64th minute to tie the game 1-1.
“It was a big momentum shift, definitely, but honestly I thought it was not that good for us because we ended up playing back and conceded a goal,” Shawnee’s Jacob Santamaria said of scoring first. “But you know we won in the end, so that’s all that matters.”
In the 86th minute it appeared that Shawnee had won the game after a goal scored off a corner, but the goal was waived off due to interference with the goalie.
“They had an undefeated record so I think we knew they were going to be really good, a really tough matchup,” Mangan said. “We went up 1-0 in the first half and I think we knew that it wasn‘t going to last because they didn’t stop coming the whole game so, they obviously tied it up. We had some chances in overtime, we scored, got called back, but they‘re a really good side and I’m just glad we won.”
Saturday‘s game was just the fifth game of the season that St. Augustine had been held to one goal, with the Hermits’ potent offense entering having scored 68 goals in 19 games. They scored nine goals in their three tournament games but went to a shootout against Lenape in the quarterfinals after ending in a 1-1 tie.
The Hermits also hadn’t trailed in a game all season.
“We knew they were going to be a good side, obviously they‘ve been undefeated coming into this,” Franks said. “A couple of their players are really good and I think even better in person. We knew it was going to be a battle and nothing but respect for them, they‘ve got a great team over there. It was a really just back-and-forth game where we carried stretches and they carried stretches, it‘s a shame someone had to walk away. Hopefully those guys over there are able to rebound for the playoffs because they have a really good side.”
For Shawnee, Saturday‘s win was the fourth-straight since a 1-0 loss to rival Cherokee on Oct. 23. According to Franks, that loss was a wake-up call to the team, and the Hermits realized that there was still work to be done.
“It was a shame we dropped that game but I think if anything it refocused us,” Franks said. “We said let‘s make sure that we don’t give away any minutes of any games, and to our boys’ credit I think they buckled down in training now. That was a big point of emphasis, it‘s not just game day, it‘s training day. We‘ve got this limited amount of time where you win, you move on, you lose, you‘re out. So let’s not give away one minute in training, let’s not give away one minute on the field and sometimes you have to pull it out in overtime and PKs.”
Lauren Knego may be reached at [email protected]. Follow her at @laurenknego
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