Upper Dublin saw its season come to an end as a result of its 10-9 loss to Strath Haven in a PIAA quarterfinal contest at Harriton High School. Photos provided courtesy of Lene White.
#1-4 STRATH HAVEN 10, #1-1 UPPER DUBLIN 9
The dust had not settled on the Flying Cardinals’ season-ending loss to the Black Panthers at Harriton High School when the cold reality that a special era had ended began to sink in for UD players and coaches alike.
“Right after we lost, I wasn’t as upset as some of the other players because I know I have another four years in college,” senior Jake Rapine said. “As I started walking to the sidelines, I realized that I’ll never play a sport with any of my brothers, any of my teammates.
“I’ve been playing with them for so long, and that’s more what I’m upset about. It’s been a great run with all of them. I love all of them.”
The loss marked the end of the line for the 14 seniors who have been together for literally a lifetime. Michael Sowers - reluctant to take off his uniform for the final time – dropped his helmet onto the track to share an emotional hug with a pair of teammates as they approached their final team meeting.
“It’s obviously tough,” Sowers said. “My first thought was – ‘This is it. This is the last time I’m putting on the uniform,’ and that was tough, but I made so many great memories. This was with my best friends, and it was a lot of fun the whole ride.”’
The ending came swiftly and with very little warning for a Flying Cardinal squad with its sights set on adding a state title to its impressive list of accomplishments as Strath Haven – which trailed the better part of the contest - used a 6-1 tear to earn the come-from-behind win.
“Sometimes the ball is not going to bounce your way,” Sowers said. “You’re going to have days like that.
“It’s frustrating – we had this vision of going all the way (to the state championship). To have a day like this where we’re not getting the bounces, we’re not getting the calls, it’s definitely frustrating. We gave it everything we had. We played hard, and we’re proud of what we did.”
What this year’s squad did was re-write the record books at Upper Dublin, capturing the program’s first ever District One Tournament and advancing to the state tournament for the first time as well.
“It’s just (hard) to know it’s finally come to an end, but it was one [heck] of a ride,” UD coach Dave Sowers said. “They’re upset because they realized their careers have come to an end. They realize now that they’re never going to play with this group that they’ve been playing with since they were seven years old.
“It’s just a shame. It just wasn’t meant to be today. It wasn’t in the cards. Strath Haven is a great team and well coached, so they’re deserving.”
Strath Haven took its first lead since late in the first period when Jack Borbee found the net with a goal that put the Panthers on top 9-8 with 8:22 remaining. The Cardinals still had plenty of time, and earlier in the game, it took the Cardinals – or more specifically, Michael Sowers – exactly 20 seconds before coming back to knot the score after the Black Panthers had taken their only other lead.
That wasn’t the case this time around. For close to six minutes, neither team scored – although it took a pair of Dillon Lojeski saves to keep the Panthers off the scoreboard during that stretch.
“The sophomore played great,” coach Sowers said of Lojeski, who recorded 17 saves in goal. “He bailed us out. I’m so proud of that kid.”
When Will Huestis scored with 2:52 remaining, Strath Haven led 10-8, but back-to-back Lojeski saves within a 10-second span set the stage for a goal by Michael Mullen with 1:15 remaining to make it a 10-9 game.
Upper Dublin was awarded the ball on the ensuing face-off and called a timeout with 1:10 remaining. They never managed a shot for the tie, and the Black Panthers ran out the clock.
“As the day went on, Strath Haven fought real hard, and they executed really well,” Michael Sowers said. “They always hung around. Hats off to them. I think they played a perfect game, and sometimes you can’t do anything about that.”
On a day when nothing went his team’s way – including some calls that raised eyebrows, coach Sowers had nothing but good things to say about his team’s effort.
“I’m just so proud of these kids,” the UD coach said. “Our motto today was – fight until you can’t fight no more. We’re down two goals with 1:30 left. It shows the character of these kids. They fought to the very end, and that’s what I’m so proud of them for.”
Sowers led the Cardinals with four goals while Mullen added a pair. Contributing single goals were Connor Wall, Nick Vernacchio and Max Winebarke. Jerry Bardol added an assist.
Ask Rapine and Sowers what they will remember most about the historic season, and both echoed similar sentiments.
“My teammates,” Rapine said. “I’ve been playing with them since I was 10 years old. It stinks to never play with them. That’s what I’ll miss the most.”
“I’ll never forget the guys that I played with,” Michael Sowers said. “The memories we had not only on the field but off the field. Off the field, we’re always together too.
“It’s definitely tough to see it end, but we made memories that we’ll be able to talk about forever.”
This year’s UD warm-up jerseys have the five-digit number 19034 – the zip code of Upper Dublin High School – emblazoned on the back of them.
“That’s where we all came together to make a big team,” Rapine said. “The younger kids know how we took it so seriously, how we worked so hard.
“I’m just hoping they can progress like we did.”
Upper Dublin (14-0 SOL) closed out a historic season with a 21-3 record.
Strath Haven 2-2-3-3 10
Upper Dublin 2-3-2-2 9
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