West Shore United of Pennsylvania will meet Royal Irish in the semifinals of the Boys HS Club National Championships after both won their quarterfinals Thursday at the Rugby Athletic Center in Charlotte, NC.

West Shore defeated the Kansas City Jr. Blues, who led well into the game and gave West Shore all they could handle. Meanwhile, Phoenix Alpharetta did Georgia proud with a tough, uncompromising effort against the defending champions Royal Irish. While the final score was 38-10, it was much, much closer at halftime, and it wasn’t until the Royal Irish solidified their continuity and finished a little fresher that they could relax.

For West Shore, the 32-21 victory over the Jr. Blues was the result of secure possession up front.

“In recent games we’ve been turning the ball over far too much,” said West Shore Head Coach Sean Robinson. “We were guilty of trying to be a little too fancy with it, and in fact that happened in this game, too. We gave up an interception for a try that put KC ahead. But when we kept it simple and maintained possession, we did well.”

The West Shore forwards fronted up nicely and scrumhalf Marvis Barrientos, back on the field after an injury had kept him out, was superb, making smart decisions and scoring two tries.

Robinson was pleased, especially with his pack, but added that too many kicks were allowed to hit the ground, and the task, against the Royal Irish, will be much tougher on Friday.

Royal Irish plays West Shore Friday at 2:30 ET.

KC Jr. Blues faces Phoenix Alpharetta at 2:30 ET in the consolation semifinal.