Rumfola

WATTSBURG — CeCe said NoNo on Tuesday.

Bishop Guilfoyle goalkeeper CeCe Rumfola delivered a masterful clean sheet in her team’s 1-0 win over Seneca in a PIAA Class 1A girls soccer first-round match at Bob Diffenbacher Field.

The junior turned aside 20 shots to blank the Lady Bobcats and propel her team to a quarterfinal showdown with McConnellsburg, a 2-0 winner over Bentworth.

“You’re talking about one of the more elite keepers I’ve seen in the state, for sure,” BG coach Joe DeLeo said. “That’s a really, really good team and she broke their hearts a dozen times, if not more.”

Rumfola was busy all evening — she was tested just 1:45 into the match when she dove to her right to deflect a shot away from the goal. She turned aside several other would-be goals to earn her third shutout in a row.

“It’s definitely a great experience playing with these girls,” Rumfola said. “Every time I make a save, they’re here for me.”

Rumfola was there for her teammates all evening, but especially during the opening minutes as Seneca (19-2) dominated possession and scoring chances.

“In the first 10 minutes, we looked pretty disorganized. They were all over us,” DeLeo said. “For most of the rest of the game until the end, I thought it was pretty back and forth. Both teams played really good defense. We felt like we held them most of the time and CeCe helped us out when she needed to.”

Seneca’s offensive pressure was no surprise since the teams met in last year’s PIAA playoffs and Bishop Guilfoyle posted a 5-4 overtime victory.

“Last year, when we played them, we saw they were such a great team with a lot of speed,” Rumfola said. “Every shot, I knew I had to go for it, not matter what. With that mentality, it can get you anywhere, really.”

The Lady Marauders (20-1), who own a powerful offense, too, finally converted one of their few chances in the first half when Delaney Lechner found the back of the net off an Emma Marasco assist with 3:16 left. On a counter attack, Lechner approached from the near side and tucked the ball inside the far post for the 1-0 advantage.

“When she scored, I jumped up in the air,” Rumfola said. “This team has a great bond and we’re going to be there for each other.”

Turns out, that was all the offense the Lady Marauders needed. They weathered a furious Seneca barrage late in the second half to take the win.

“They just brought it all in the second half. We had to be ready for it,” Rumfola said. “My defense is always there for me and covers for me, no matter what. We have such a great group of girls this year. The entire team helps out playing defense and does a great job with it.”

The squad frustrated the Lady Bobcats by blocking several shots and silencing their high-powered attack.

“We played these guys in the first round last year and it was a totally different game. It’s hard to predict how things would go,” DeLeo said. “I wouldn’t have thought one goal would have won this, but we’re happy it did.”

SCORE BY HALVES

Bishop Guilfoyle 1 0 – 1

Seneca 0 0 – 0

First half: BG-Lechner (Marasco), 36:44

Records: Bishop Guilfoyle (20-1); Seneca (19-2).