The inaugural River Cup soccer game was played between the SHRHS Eagles and Solebury School Spartans on Sept. 24.
This annual event will pit these two “friendly” rivals against each other for yearly possession of a beautiful trophy of a golden soccer ball held aloft by a shaft of water representing the Delaware River.
Solebury applied most of the pressure in an intense first half and went into the break with a one-goal lead thanks to a shot by Alex Kim, a senior from Korea. Senior mid-fielder Asaf Davidov got the assist on the play.
If not for the play of senior goalkeeper Captain Jonathan Wendeborn, of SHRHS, the Spartans might have had a few more.
The pace of play increased in the second half with the Eagles applying some pressure of their own. Senior center-midfielder Captain Zach Mastrich got SHRHS on the board with a blast off a direct kick from 40 feet.
With senior Captain Julian Dahl steadying the defense, Solebury was not to be outdone. Matthias Erdmann, a junior from Germany, quickly took a feed from senior mid-fielder Captain Garrett Vail and put the Spartans back on top.
Then it was the Eagles turn to even things up as Mastrich unleashed another direct kick from the same distance, this time to be finished by sophomore mid-fielder Dario Sabidussi.
The battle of equals came down to the very end by way of a goal by Solebury sophomore striker Mathew Ludak on a pass from senior defenseman Dean Lunchroom with five minutes left on the clock.
The Eagles continued to press in the waning minutes with several shots just missing the net. Solebury ultimately claimed first possession of The River Cup with a 3-2 victory.
After the awarding of the trophy, SHRHS Athletic Director Jason Miller declared, “I’m proud of both teams for how hard they fought today, and even more for the of quality of people they are. We’re excited to begin the tradition of The River Cup.”
Both coaches beamed about their charges.
Eagles Coach Craig Roth commented, “I’m really proud of our boys for fighting all the way, and I’m particularly impressed with Zach Mastrich with his on-field leadership and skills off our set-plays, Andrew Nini, of SHRHS, by serving as the anchor for our defense, and Jonathan Wendeborn, who is always outstanding in goal. These three are the backbone of our team.”
Solebury Coach Eric Soroka characterized the game as “a hard fought match. Those are the kinds of games where the players have to find a little something extra within themselves in order to secure a victory.”

