Fortunately, the latest swing was a big-time up that may have rescued the season.

http://www.gametimepa.com/franklinfulton/ci_24317413/h-s-boys-soccer-chambersburg-upsets-cumberland-valley

The Trojans were 7-3 overall and 6-2 in the Mid Penn Commonwealth Division after the first half of the schedule. Then came the Red Land game at Trojan Stadium to start off the second half and it was like a punch in the groin.

Chambersburg led 2-1 and was two men up after the Patriots had two players ejected. Yet, somehow, Red Land rallied for a 3-2 win in overtime.

That started a downward trend in the second half, when the Trojans were 2-4-1 with one game left. And that game was against unbeaten division champion Cumberland Valley, which came in 16-0-1 (15-0 MPC), at Eagle View. Even worse, Chambersburg had dropped below the line to qualify for the District 3 Class AAA Tournament.

But then came Tuesday’s 1-0 win over CV and all was well again.

The Trojans finished 10-7-1 and tied with State College for second place in the Commonwealth with a 9-6-1 mark. They also moved up to 18th in the power rankings, assuring themselves of a playoff berth.

So how did Chambersburg hand CV its first loss and first shutout of the season?

All it took was coach Guy Furfaro devising a new alignment that stressed defense and his team absorbing it in a short session during Monday’s practice.

“We knew their ball movement is amazing, and we had to keep them from geting bahind us with their diagonal runs,” Furfaro said. “We set up in a 2-3-3-2 lineup in practice. I talked for about five minutes — nothing too specific — and, it worked. They didn’t get many chances because they didn’t get behind us, and most of their shots were from outside.

“In the first overtime they had a couple of chances, but that’s the only time we were just holding on.”

The Trojans’ Erik Espinoza was denied on a one-on-one with Eagle goalkeeper Cam Avery with seven minutes left in regulation, but it was Espinoza’s shot early in the second overtime that produced the game-winner.

“The kids executed the game plan and it worked,” Furfaro said.

So the question is, will this high continue for the playoffs?

On Tuesday night, the Trojans hosted a banged-up Red Land team at Trojan Stadium. The Patriots were playing without four starters, including their goalkeeper, and had lost at home to Chambersburg earlier in the year, 3-1.

It’s quite possible the Trojans, who had been playing well despite a 4-0 loss to unbeaten Cumberland Valley, took Red Land lightly.

Chambersburg scored a first-half goal when a shot deflected off a Patriot defender. After Red Land tied it early in the second half, the Trojans were awarded a penalty kick when a Red Land defender punched away a shot that was headed into the net. Matt Porter made the PK and the Patriot player was ejected.

With 10 minutes left, Red Land lost a second player to a red card. The player committed a hard foul near midfield, then kicked the ball into the stands.

So the scenario was: Chambersburg 2, Red Land 1, 10 minutes left and the Trojans playing 11 on nine. Should have been easy, right?

Not so fast.

The Patriots tied it with six minutes left. A Chambersburg defender tried to clear a ball and instead hit it into a teammate and the ball rolled right to Red Land’s Tristan Haring, who scored to tie the game.

“When it got to a two-man advantage, we got worse and worse and they got better and better,” Trojan coach Guy Furfaro said. “We tried to calm them down and make them relax at the break, but Red Land had the momentum and we panicked.”

Early in the first overtime, Willie Staz headed in a goal to lift the Patriots to a hard-to-believe 3-2 victory.

Furfaro said, “We weren’t able to keep possession, we didn’t pressure them and we played defense by lunging at them like a bunch of 12-year-olds who had never played the game before. Seriously, we played like the kids we had out there on Saturday night at halftime (for Youth Night), and that’s no disrespect to the little kids.

“It was very unusual for this group of kids to play like this. We did not expect that at all.”

Furfaro is hoping the cruel defeat will teach a lesson — you can’t let down against anybody in the Mid Penn Commonwealth Division, no matter what the circumstances.

It’s one of those results that could take the air out of the balloon, or could make the team refocus and get better.

Squinting to see numbers on the backs of jerseys from my seat in the press box at Trojan Stadium on Monday during Chambersburg’s field hockey game against Cedar Cliff, I almost missed the No. 43 on the back of the Colts’ second goal scorer.

I was caught up looking at his hair.

Yes, it turned out, it was his hair — short, blonde, and belonging to Medard Kowalski, the one boy playing for Cedar Cliff.

Cedar Cliff field hockey rookie Medard Kowalski is flanked by teammates after a win at Chambersburg.

Later I found out a male sighting on the field hockey pitch wasn’t that rare. But as someone with little knowledge of the game or guys playing it, I had to seek out the main man of the afternoon.

It turned out Medard decided to dump football — he was a linebacker — in favor of field hockey.

“At first I believe (the rest of the team) was like, “Aw, I don’t think he’s going to actually try, I think he’s just going to come out here as a joke,’” Kowalski said. “But now I think they understand that I’m coming in here serious.”

Kowalski is no small guy (linebacker, remember), but Chambersburg’s girls didn’t share much of the fear their parents may have felt with him on the field.

“I seriously just saw him as one of the girls,” said Trojan Tia Patillo. “But there were a couple of girls, and sometimes me even, that would be a little bit hesitant to go to the ball if he had it.”

Chambersburg coach Jen Amsley said, “I don’t think it really fazed them that there was a guy playing against them.”

You might think Kowalski could just pick up a stick and dominate, but that hasn’t been the case.

“He’s not a varsity starter and he’s completely still in that learning stage of positioning and stickwork,” Eagle coach Justin Weaver said. “In terms of being an impact player, he’s not quite there.”

Kowalski said, “It’s a lot harder than people think. Guys have some capabilities that might be better than girls, but I think those don’t apply to field hockey as much.”

His dedication to improve has won over his teammates.

Eagle teammate Nicole Rupnik said, “He tries really hard and you’d think as a guy he wouldn’t, because he’s just naturally fast, but he stays after practice and works really hard.”

That work paid off with his goal Monday, which Weaver believes may be the first point scored by a guy in Cedar Cliff field hockey history.

There’s no doubt that mixing guys into girls sports would work better with some games than others. Along with field hockey, I’d think some scenarios in other girls sports could work to add a guy. How about a male libero in volleyball? A guy who doesn’t serve in doubles tennis? Even a male pitcher in softball — I doubt many guys can throw as hard or harder than the top female pitchers.

At the same time, you can’t create rules that judge whether a guy would be “too good” to play with the girls. There have been select scenarios in which girls have played with the guys, but again, only in certain sports and in certain capacities (i.e. the kicker for the football team). In 2010, 18-year old Japanese female knuckleball pitcher Eri Yoshida signed with the Chico Outlaws of the Golden Baseball League.

Episodes like Medard’s are telling of change to come. In 10 or 15 years there probably won’t be a guy playing for Cedar Cliff or Chambersburg’s girls field hockey team. That’s because there may be a guys team. There have been professional women’s football leagues recognized by the national media, but no opportunities for girls to really play football in high school. It might take a while, but I wouldn’t rule that out someday.

The one thing that might change when those boys field hockey teams gain traction are the outfits.

“I play club out of Harrisburg and we play against plenty of guys,” Patillo said. “They weren’t wearing kilts, though.”

The Rockets ended a 20-game losing streak Friday night with a rousing 26-24 victory over Camp Hill.

Now they have their sights set on Waynesboro, which comes to Mercersburg this Friday to kick off the Mid Penn Colonial Division schedule.

The Rockets are 1-2 and the Indians are now 0-3. In Week 2, New Oxford whipped JB 55-14. On Friday, New Oxford was a 51-14 winner over Waynesboro.

How soon will the Rockets stop celebrating the Camp Hill game and get ready for the ’Boro?

“We need to play every game like we did tonight,” said JB coach Andy Stoner, still basking in the glow of Friday’s win. “The guys need to realize that they have an opportunity to be 2-2 if we play well again.”

The funny thing is, Stoner felt his team had a lousy week of practice leading up the Camp Hill game.

“We had a terrible practice Tuesday, and I was beside myself,” Stoner said. “Then Wednesday, we were hit with a storm, so we couldn’t go with full pads and we had to practice in the gym. I was looking at so much film, I was beat. One night I was holding my son and fell asleep and he was crying and my wife had to wake me up.”

But something clicked while the team was warming up for the game.

The defense stymied Camp Hill’s spread offense, created five turnovers and helped the offense put up enough points. Shamar Pates had two interceptions and ran back a kickoff for a score, and Hunter Brown carried 14 times for 176 yards and three touchdowns.

The Rockets can enjoy all those pats on the back this week — they’ve earned them.

It will be interesting to see if they keep the hunger for next week.

It’s “now or never” all the time when you’re playing your sports season as a senior.

So when upperclassmen find themselves in situations where they’re relying on younger players, sometimes kids that were playing in middle school at this time last year, it can’t be easy.

But there’s been quite a bit of that on teams this fall around Franklin and Fulton counties.

Watching the James Buchanan girls tennis team fall 4-1 to defending Mid Penn Colonial champion Trinity last week, freshman Rachel Martin made her debut for the Rockets at No. 2 doubles. Her partner was senior Megan Louder.

I can’t think of any fall sport where one player relies as much on another than in doubles tennis. Louder trusted the rookie — Martin hadn’t even started playing tennis until this past summer — and the tandem won JB’s only match of the day.

Give not only Louder credit for trusting the freshman, but the other seniors on JB. Missing their No. 1 singles player, Natalie Shank stepped up in the same match from the No. 2 slot and lost 6-0, 6-0. But if you hadn’t followed the match you’d have thought she won based on her positive attitude afterward.

This week the Chambersburg girls volleyball team beat a less talented Hedgesville, W.Va. squad in its opener. The Trojans won in straight sets but could have blown Hedgesville out. Instead, they chose to test themselves and a slew of younger players — Chambersburg has only three seniors.

On the final few points in set No. 3, senior Jada Pickett probably could have called for a set to end things sooner. Instead, she was patient and let a group of sophomores and freshmen with a lot of potential try and figure it out.

Fellow senior Karli Frelin said, “We’re just trying to help bring up the younger girls and help them feel more comfortable playing at the varsity level.”

It’s been impressive to watch freshmen like Martin step up, but even more oustanding in my view to see some examples of senior leadership like these. For all of the stories of selfishness filling our sports world every week, let’s not lose sight of examples of players showing the brains and patience to build a winning team.

It figured to be a close game against Carlisle — it seems like almost every Trojan-Herd game is — but I was mostly interested to see how Chambersburg would fare using its new 3-3-4 formation.

Of all the games I’ve covered or officiated over the last decade or so, I’m not sure I remember any team using four forwards. Soccer is usually a situation in which teams make sure their defense is sound first, then worry about the offense.

So when Trojan coach Guy Furfaro told me during the interview for the preseason story that he was trying a 3-3-4, I was a little surprised. Of course, Furfaro was a vaunted striker in his playing days, so perhaps I shouldn’t have been THAT surprised.

Well, so far, it’s working.

Chambersburg is 3-1 (2-0 MPC) and has scored 16 goals in four games.

Sitting in the press box at Trojan Stadium is a great vantage point to see soccer games because you can how plays develop and you can easily see the flow of the game. What I noticed right away was that when opposing teams are on offense, the 3-3-4 can allow some gaping holes in the defense.

Carlisle took advantage of one to score the first goal. A ball that had been deep in the Chambersburg penalty area came out on the ground and the Herd’s Evan Collins was completely unmarked and ripped a shot into the net.

There were at least four other decent chances on similar plays.

In the second half, the Trojans closed down on those situations when defensive midfielders Clayton Cox and Effren Amezquita dropped a little deeper.

Furfaro said, “We know that’s going to be something we give up at times. But we think as long as those shots are coming from outside the box, our keepers should be able to save most of them, unless they hit a really good shot. If they do, well, you tip your cap to them.”

One thing about the new alignment — giving up a goal or two doesn’t mean the game is over. As long as the Trojans can get the ball to its offense enough times, they have a chance.

It will be interesting to see how teams adjust to Chambersburg the second time they play the Trojans. If nothing else, Furfaro has opponents thinking about how to play against the 3-3-4. Sometimes that in itself can be an edge.

But an interesting point was brought to my attention while talking with Chambersburg girls soccer coach Eric Guyer.

That “Go, Go, Go!” mentality might not always be necessary.

“We haven’t learned to work efficiently yet,” Guyer said. “We do a lot of running that we don’t need to do, but we’re getting better at that.”

I asked him to elaborate on what he meant by “working efficiently,” and he told me something I hadn’t concerned previously.

Because the Trojans play on a turf field, it’s nearly impossible for the ladies to run down every pass and make the sprint back to position each and every time. Some balls are going to get away, and it might be smarter to consider which balls are worth going after and which are not.

In an endurance game like soccer, it’s just as important to conserve energy as it is to play your heart out for 80 minutes.

Now, that’s not to say student-athletes should relax or take it easy, but as Guyer said, it’s about working efficiently and intelligently.

“They’re learning angles and starting to understand you’re not going to be able to make that 40-yard sprint every time.”

Max Bell, of Chambersburg, tees off during the first Mid Penn Colonial Division golf tournament of the season at Chambersburg Country Club. (Public Opinion, Markell DeLoatch)

With fall sports fully underway, one thing has become abundantly clear — Chambersburg found its footing early this season.

Six Trojan teams have had their first official contests, and all six put a tally in the win column to begin.

The cross country teams also got off to a great start: Although the annual Enos Yeager Invitational does not provide a team score, Courtney Group and Grant Frey both represented Chambersburg with a victory. The girls were so controlling in the cross country opener that the Trojans took the top three spots.

Other impressive opening dominations include the first Mid Penn Colonial Division golf match, which the Trojans won by 44 strokes; the 56-10 rout of Greencastle-Antrim on the football field; and a 3-0 start to the season for the Lady Trojan tennis squad, which lost only two sets in that time.

Chambersburg’s field hockey team, which has been struggling of late, also impressed the Blue Devils on Friday when Atley Ashway scored with less than five minutes remaining to capture a 2-1 victory. It was the first time since 2010 that the Trojans have won their first game of the season.

Finally, both soccer teams made their way to the Hershey tournament this weekend, and each opened with a victory. The boys controlled Donegal, 9-1, while the girls likewise earned a win over the Indians, 3-0. Although both Trojan soccer squads fell in the championship games, they had the honor of a second-place fininsh in the season-opening tournaments.

The final Trojan team that needs a “W” for Chambersburg to go undefeated in openers this fall is the volleyball team, which will play its first match against Hedgesville, W.Va., on Wednesday.

Despite this strong start, the trek is uphill from here. Most of Chambersburg’s fall teams compete in the highly competitive Mid Penn Commonwealth Division and will continue to face tougher opponents as the season goes on.

But one thing’s for sure: These Trojans have certainly gotten off on the right foot.

I eat, sleep and breathe football.

So when autumn starts rolling around, the leaves start changing colors and those crisp fall smells start filling the air, my mind finds a sense of relief — football is coming.

That also means it’s time to dust off the old fantasy football magazines and start digging my heels into the best possibilities.

If you’ve read some of my previous columns, you’ll know I’m pretty much the greatest chooser of all things that fail. It kind of comes with the territory of being a Detroit Lions fan. But if there’s one thing I can pride myself on this year, it’s my fantasy football team.

I was a bit more strategic in my picking this season.

I allow myself one token Detroit Lion, and with Calvin Johnson sitting available when my first pick came around (No. 7 overall, mind you), I had to take him.

I picked up some other nice players as well: Tom Brady in the third round (not a bad QB for the 21st overall pick, if I do say so myself); Alfred Morris as my top RB; a solid tight end in Tony Gonzalez.

And my depth is through the roof in comparison to my past few fantasy years. Behind Megatron, a solid corps of receivers including Mike Wallace, Greg Jennings and Steve Smith should serve me well. Darren Sproles and Maurice Jones-Drew should do some work on the ground for me also.

I thought I was content from there. Until the second to last round when it came time to pick a kicker. And I realized one of the reasons I’m not a fantasy football lover.

Arguably the best kicker left available when my turn rolled around was David Akers.

Unproven in the Honolulu blue of a Lions jersey, Akers still leaves me with high expectations.

Let’s be honest, though — I want fantasy points, but there’s no way I’m rooting for the Lions to be kicking field goals all year long.

But again, I have to face the facts: I root for a team that kicks a lot of field goals. The 36 the Lions attempted last year was sixth most in the NFL.

I sent a text to my fellow Lions-fan friend while I was going through this conundrum. All he said in response was, “The Detroit Lions: Failing in the Red Zone Since 1936.”

I picked Akers.

And although I have two Lions on my team — a rule a fantasy football player should never break — including one that will force me to hope for a field goal at least every once in awhile, I’m pretty confident in my team.

And despite being faced with this dilemma, fantasy football reminds me we have just one week left until the best time of the year.

My short answer: No.

Greencastle-Antrim coach Chuck Tinninis and Chambersburg coach Mark Saunders meet for the coin toss before the season-opening football game on Friday night.

My longer answer: The Blue Devils knew they were in for a serious test in the non-league season opener against the Chambersburg Trojans on Friday night. While Chambersburg returned the likes of quarterback Ryan Martin, running backs Jordan Brown and Jamal Pickett and defensive back J.T. Hopple, Greencastle returned only three starters. That’s a recipe for trouble from the get-go.

On top of that, Greencastle faces what is arguably its toughest opponent of the season to start. Susquehanna Township is also looking pretty good (the Blue Devils face Twp. in Week 3), but Chambersburg plays in a very tough Mid Penn Commonwealth Division and is G-A’s only Class AAAA opponent other than division rival Waynesboro.

So, here’s some hope Greencastle fans: It can only go up from here.

For continued coverage of tonight’s season opener between Greencastle and Chambersburg, visit my live chat on GameTimePA.com.