Hershey Trojans Boys soccer defeats Palmyra Cougars in PIAA District III 3A final

Madeline Smith, Sports editor

Hershey Boys soccer beat Palmyra 3-1 on Thursday, November 4th, 2021 for the district championship title.

Hershey Park Stadium was buzzing with spectators who came to see the matchup between district rivals. 

As soon as the whistle was blown the two teams came out hard. Not far into the first half the Trojans put one in the back of Palmyra’s net. 

The first goal was scored by senior Andrew Zhao who headed the ball off of sophomore Stephen Verbeek’s free kick. 

Both teams had equal possession and opportunities up until the last 5 minutes of the second where Hershey had majority of ball control. 

The Trojans scored their second goal at the end of the first half. Senior and captain Ben Zimmer dribbled all the way up the field , his goal unassisted.

At half time Hershey was still leading the cougars 2-0 

Immediately In the start of the second half Palmyra came out and scored making it 2-1 Hershey. 

Hershey dominated in ball possession and clearance out of the back thanks to senior and captain, Owen Schmidt. Hershey didn’t give Palmyra many opportunities to tie up the one goal game. 

Denying Palmyra’s chance at a comeback , Hershey salted their win away with another goal from Andrew Zhao with two minutes left remaining in the second half.

The Trojans are now 3A district champions with a record of 18-2-1. Their nexT game is Tuesday, November 9th, 2021. They play Archbishop Ryan at Hershey Highschool. Purchase tickets for the game here.