ROCKY RIVER, Ohio (Oct. 16, 2024) -- Rocky River prevailed in a Wednesday district bracket lid-lifter, as the Pirates -- the No. 10 seed in DIII Region 9 -- clocked an 8-0 triumph over Lutheran West.
The Lads in Maroon hosted the Northeast 4 District Tournament match amidst an autumn chill, but the Double-R heated things up with three early goals (Eric Gorius, Jordan Cook, Stephen Cain) -- all scored before the midpoint of the opening half -- and the Pirates never looked back.
Gorius scored on a 10-yarder assisted by Noah Nagy in the 10th minute. Cook doubled that early lead with a rebound put-back four minutes later. A Sebastian Maher direct free kick set up Cain's goal in the 20th minute. Gorius was part of nifty, back-to-back, give-and-go scores for the River Raiders -- one closing out first-half-scoring and another opening the can in the second period -- in the 34th (on a goal assisted by Steph Loizos) and 47th (assisting on a Quentin Daily marker). That had the Pirates sailing under full sheets by the early minutes of the second half, and River would cruise to third postseason win over the 45th-seeded Longhorns in as many seasons.
A third Gorius goal and two more Quentin Daily scores marked the balance of Rocky River's scoring on a night that saw the Buccaneers match a tally they hung on the Longhorns (2-12-4) earlier this season (8-0 win on Sept. 21). Cain, who had logged a pair of goals in the September meeting, registered assists on the final two goals of the night.
All throughout, goalkeeper Matthew Swislocki was upright and unbothered. Swislocki filed a save on the only shot he faced. For the match, River outshot Lutheran 23-1. The Pirates put 16 of their 23 shots on frame.
Rocky River (12-3-2), which won three Buckeye State playoff games and made its way to a district final last fall, now gets a week to prepare for its next contest. The Pirates will host No. 34 Copley in a Northeast 4 semifinal Oct. 24.
The Pirates, who are 9-1-2 since Sept. 4, will be hunting another key October win in that one. A win at that point of the season where nothing else will do if they want to keep playing.
CANNON FIRE ...
Q BRANCH: Quentin Daily's three goals matched his single-game high. Daily, who has filed five multi-goal games this season, also logged a hat trick in Rocky River's Aug. 16 season opener vs. Fairview. The sophomore has registered 16 goals and an assist this season.
ODDS & ENDS: Rocky River is 7-1-1 at home this season. The Pirates are 16-2-1 across heir last 19 matches at Rocky River Stadium. ... The Pirates and Longhorns have now met six times in Buckeye State tournament action. ... River has filed shutout wins in its last two games and in three of its last four. The Pirates have posted seven shutout wins overall. For the season, the Double-R has scored 66 goals while allowing just 16.
by Skip Snow
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