BY JEFF FALK
SOUTH LEBANON – Is it the Ritter-Hoffman Cup? Or the Hoffman-Ritter Cup?
It really all depends.
But for the next 12 months, it’ll be the Ritter-Hoffman Cup!
On a fresh Saturday evening on Arnold Field at Earl Boltz Stadium, the Cedar Crest boys’ soccer team earned bragging rights in its heated and annual rivalry with neighboring Elco by edging the Raiders 1-0. The only goal of the contest was a somewhat controversial one scored just before intermission, and the Falcons’ stifling defense made it relatively easy for senior keeper Josh Wildonger to make it stand up.
With the win, the Falcons improved to 3-0 and continued their surprising hot start to the season. Elco dropped to 1-3 overall.
Played for annually by the two rivals, the Ritter-Hoffman Cup is named for George Ritter, who is credited with founding the Cedar Crest boys’ soccer program, and Barney Hoffman, who is remembered for founding Elco’s. The Raiders had captured the last two Ritter-Hoffman Cups, and the Falcons now lead the all-time series 16-14-1.
“For me, it’s historically significant,” said Cedar Crest head coach Travis Bensing. “I’m a Cedar Crest graduate and when we played we beat Elco. It’s an honor to come back and help get The Cup back. The one thing I’ve been trying to do is make them (his players) understand the historical significance of the event.
“Hats off to Elco for playing a very good game,” continued Bensing. “It’s always a challenge when playing for The Cup.”
“I think it means a lot,” said Elco head coach Kirk Keppley. “They (his players) get pumped every time we play Cedar Crest. We’ve been rivals forever. It’s the Ritter-Hoffman Cup and we’re neighbors. It was a battle, like it always is.”
The majority of the match was contested in the midfield, and neither side generated many scoring opportunities. But if one side enjoyed the better of the chances it was Cedar Crest, and the Falcons capitalized on their best chance.
Late in the first half, the Falcons mounted a hard run down the right side of the field. The ball was played inside to Cedar Crest junior Will Malawi, who was taken down in the box.
The call could’ve gone either way, but Cedar Crest was awarded a penalty kick, one that Ethan Wenzler made good on. Wenzler notched the only goal of the game by beating Elco goalkeeper Adam Johnson, with his right foot to the lower left-side of the goal.
“What I saw was we got the ball wide to the wing,” said Bensing. “And I saw our striker (Malawi) make his cut. I didn’t see all the contact.
“I didn’t see Ethan’s ball move (on the penalty kick),” Bensing continued. “I only saw the net move. He’s very accurate.”
“I guess he felt he got too much of his body,” said Keppley of the official. “We thought he got the ball. It is what it is. The two refs saw two different things.
“I thought we did well,” continued Keppley. “We came out hard and we knew it was going to be a battle. I thought it was back and forth for the first half. I told them (his players), ‘No letdowns’. We came out in the first 40 minutes and had no letdowns, and went down 1-0. We thought it was a hard play and no foul.”
During the second 40 minutes of play, the Raiders really never came close to generating the equalizer. The only good scoring chance in the second half belonged to Cedar Crest’s Chad Ryland.
“Defensively, we were on point,” said Bensing. “We held our marks and we didn’t have many break downs. Offensively, there were things we could clean up.
“We got the job done tonight,” added Bensing. “I think they (his players) looked at it as a must-win game. If we’re going to make the playoffs, this is the kind of game we need to win.”
“They (the Falcons) were good at getting two or three guys to the ball very quickly,” said Keppley. “Other than the game yesterday, we’re having trouble finding the back of the net. It’s not good. We’ve got to start generating goals. We were hoping to get some tonight. But their defense was solid.”
Earlier in the first half, Johnson had kept the game score-less with some aggressive goalkeeping in the box.
The final stats saw Cedar Crest out shoot Elco 5-3. The Falcons enjoyed a similar 5-3 advantage in corner kicks.
“I think we’re playing well,” said Bensing, whose program hasn’t qualified for the District Three playoffs over the last decade. “We see things we need to improve. But our section is very difficult. Our goal is to get back into districts.
“We need to play the same kind of defense we played tonight, and we need to generate more shots on goal,” added Bensing. “I like to tell the kids we’re happy with where we’re at, but we’re not satisfied. We’ve got to keep improving.”
“They (the Falcons) possess the ball well,” said Keppley. “They move the ball well. They’re a good team. They have eight returning starters. We knew they were going to be good. You want a good battle. Not only was it a good battle, it was good soccer too.
“We have (Lancaster) Mennonite on Tuesday night,” Keppley added. “We’ve had some good games early on, but we need to win a few. I think they’ll come,and hopefully they’ll come sooner rather than later.”
To purchase images in this article email jkfalk2005@yahoo.com, or to view more go to https://lebanonsportsbuzz.com/photo-gallery/.
Ritter-Hoffman Cup History
2017 – Cedar Crest
2016 – Elco
2015 – Elco
2014 – Tie
2013 – Cedar Crest
2012 – Cedar Crest
2011 – Cedar Crest
2010 – Elco
2009 – Elco
2008 – Elco
2007 – Elco
2006 – Cedar Crest
2005 – Cedar Crest
2004 – Elco
2003 – Cedar Crest
2002 – Elco
2001 – Cedar Crest
2000 – Elco
1999 – Elco
1998 – Cedar Crest
1997 – Cedar Crest
1996 – Cedar Crest
1995 – Cedar Crest
1994 – Cedar Crest
1993 – Elco
1992 – Elco
1991 – Elco
1990 – Elco
1989 – Elco
1988 – Cedar Crest
1987 – Cedar Crest
2017 Cedar Crest Boys’ Soccer Schedule
| Date/Time | Opponent | Location | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sat Aug 19 7:00PM |
 |
TBA | Cedar Crest High School CCHS Stadium |
 |
|
| Wed Aug 23 4:00PM |
 |
Carlisle Area High School | Carlisle Area High School | |
|
| Mon Aug 28 4:00PM |
|
Palmyra Area Senior High School | Cedar Crest High School CCHS Stadium |
|
|
| Sat Sep 2 10:00AM |
|
Governor Mifflin Senior High School | Governor Mifflin Senior High School Soccer Field |
|
|
| Thu Sep 7 4:00PM |
|
Solanco High School | Solanco High School Soccer Field 1 Game Field |
|
|
| Sat Sep 9 5:30PM |
|
Eastern Lebanon County High School | Cedar Crest High School CCHS Stadium |
|
|
| Mon Sep 11 3:45PM |
|
Cocalico Senior High School | Cedar Crest High School CCHS Stadium |
|
|
| Tue Sep 12 7:00PM |
|
Lampeter-Strasburg High School | Cedar Crest High School CCHS Stadium |
|
|
| Thu Sep 14 7:00PM |
|
Manheim Central School District | Eldon Rettew Stadium Complex Stadium |
|
|
| Sat Sep 16 6:30PM |
|
Mechanicsburg Area Senior High School | Cedar Crest High School CCHS Stadium |
|
|
| Mon Sep 18 7:00PM |
|
Elizabethtown Area High School | Cedar Crest High School CCHS Stadium |
|
|
| Wed Sep 20 7:00PM |
|
Ephrata High School | Cedar Crest High School CCHS Stadium |
|
|
| Sat Sep 23 10:00AM |
|
Garden Spot High School | Garden Spot Senior High School Stadium |
|
|
| Tue Sep 26 7:00PM |
|
Cocalico Senior High School | Cocalico Senior High School Talon Field – Turf |
|
|
| Thu Sep 28 4:00PM |
|
Solanco High School | Cedar Crest High School CCHS Stadium |
|
|
| Fri Sep 29 4:00PM |
|
Hershey High School | Hershey High School | |
|
| Mon Oct 2 4:00PM |
|
Lampeter-Strasburg High School | Lampeter-Strasburg High School Varsity Soccer Field (#2) |
|
|
| Wed Oct 4 7:00PM |
|
Manheim Central School District | Cedar Crest High School CCHS Stadium |
|
|
| Fri Oct 6 4:00PM |
|
Elizabethtown Area High School | Elizabethtown Area High School Jane Hoover Field |
|
|
| Mon Oct 9 7:00PM |
|
Ephrata High School | Ephrata High School War Memorial Field |
|
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| Wed Oct 11 7:00PM |
|
Garden Spot High School | Cedar Crest High School CCHS Stadium |
|
2017 Elco Boys’ Soccer Schedule
| Date/Time | Opponent | Location | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tue Aug 22 4:00PM |
 |
Oley Valley Senior High School | Eastern Lebanon Co Sr High School Upper Soccer Field |
 |
||
| Sat Aug 26 2:00PM |
Boys Soccer Blue Gold Game | Eastern Lebanon Co Sr High School Stadium |
|
|||
| Mon Aug 28 4:00PM |
|
Cocalico Senior High School | Eastern Lebanon Co Sr High School Upper Soccer Field |
|
||
| Fri Sep 1 10:00AM |
|
Palmyra Area Senior High School | Eastern Lebanon Co Sr High School Stadium |
|
||
| Wed Sep 6 7:00PM |
 |
Lancaster Catholic High School | Lancaster Catholic High School Stadium Complex Rossmere Stadium |
|
||
| Fri Sep 8 4:00PM |
|
Lebanon Catholic School | Eastern Lebanon Co Sr High School Stadium |
|
||
| Sat Sep 9 5:30PM |
|
Cedar Crest High School | Cedar Crest High School CCHS Stadium |
|
||
| Tue Sep 12 7:00PM |
|
Lancaster Mennonite School | Eastern Lebanon Co Sr High School Stadium |
|
||
| Thu Sep 14 7:00PM |
|
Donegal Senior High School | Donegal Senior High School Stadium |
|
||
| Sat Sep 16 10:00AM |
|
Northern Lebanon HS/MS | Eastern Lebanon Co Sr High School Stadium |
|
||
| Tue Sep 19 7:00PM |
|
Pequea Valley High School | Eastern Lebanon Co Sr High School Stadium |
|
||
| Thu Sep 21 7:00PM |
|
Annville-Cleona High School | Annville-Cleona High School Varsity Soccer |
|
||
| Sat Sep 23 10:00AM |
|
Wyomissing Area High School | Eastern Lebanon Co Sr High School Stadium |
|
||
| Wed Sep 27 7:00PM |
|
Lancaster Catholic High School | Eastern Lebanon Co Sr High School Stadium |
|
||
| Fri Sep 29 4:00PM |
|
Lebanon Catholic School | Lebanon Catholic High School School field |
|
||
| Sat Sep 30 11:00AM |
|
Tulpehocken Junior/Senior High School | Tulpehocken Junior/Senior High School Stadium |
|
||
| Mon Oct 2 7:00PM |
|
Lancaster Mennonite School | Lancaster Mennonite High School Turf Field |
|
||
| Wed Oct 4 7:00PM |
|
Donegal Senior High School | Eastern Lebanon Co Sr High School Stadium |
|
||
| Fri Oct 6 4:00PM |
|
Northern Lebanon HS/MS | Northern Lebanon MS/HS V/JV Soccer – 6 |
|
||
| Mon Oct 9 7:00PM |
|
Pequea Valley High School | Pequea Valley High School Field 1-Turf Stadium |
|
||
| Wed Oct 11 7:00PM |
|
Annville-Cleona High School | Eastern Lebanon Co Sr High School Stadium |
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