CB East saw its season end in Tuesday’s PIAA 3A semifinal with a 1-0 loss to District 11 champion Emmaus. Photos provided courtesy of Tracy Valko. Check back for a gallery of photos.
#11-1 EMMAUS 1, #1-1 CENTRAL BUCKS EAST 0
Kenzie Lever and her Patriot teammates had just said their emotional farewells after Tuesday’s season-ending loss in a PIAA 3A semifinal.
“You never know how it feels to be a senior until you are one,” the Patriots’ senior captain said.
Lever was one of 11 seniors on this year’s East squad, and the ending wasn’t going to be easy no matter when it happened.
“We’re all so passionate about the game, and we all want the same thing, which is to win,” senior captain Phia Mannino said. “It’s really upsetting to see it end because we’ve formed such a close bond.
“This has been like a six-month long season. We started workouts in July and have been going ever since.”
“It’s crazy too,” Lever said. “You play with these girls not only at East but when you were younger through middle school.
“We all have such a close bond that it’s just crazy we’re never going to play with each other. It’s definitely sad to move on to the next chapter.”
“It’s like losing family,” senior captain Emily Bullard said.
Although disappointed with the outcome, there were no regrets with the effort against an Emmaus squad that has won 12 state championships and recently captured its 32nd straight District XI crown.
“I think we definitely were playing more defensive today because they were such a strong team, and we knew that, but I definitely think we held our own,” Lever said. “They had a game last weekend against (Honesdale), and they won 11-0.
“They have a strong offense, and they know how to score, but we obviously didn’t want it to be the type of game where it was a blowout. Although we wanted to come out on top, I think we’re happy that we held them to 1-0.”
From the outset, it was clear that the Patriots could play with the highly regarded Green Hornets, and it was hardly a surprise to see the two teams enter the final quarter locked in a scoreless tie.
“They went in very well prepared and focused,” Spratt said. “The pressure was not on us. We said that a number of times that they’re expected to be here and expected to be in the state championship year after year.
“We went just thinking – let’s make the most of it, give them a run for their money and see what happens. I think they went in with a really good mentality ready for the game, knowing what they were going into.”
It took a perfectly executed corner for the Green Hornets to get on the scoreboard with 13:19 remaining in regulation when Kylie Faust scored off the rebound of a goalie save.
“I think we definitely came into this game with confidence but we can never be cocky,” Bullard said. “They had an excellent corner – very well executed. We know they can get those kinds of shots off.
“As a goalie and defense, it’s heart wrenching. As a team, it’s heart wrenching because if you could have done more maybe it would have been different. I wish there was more that could be done.”
The Patriots drew a pair of corners in the fourth quarter and had their chances but could not find the cage.
“It was a great field hockey game, and I said I think whoever won this game is going to take states,” Spratt said. “It was some of the highest competitive high school hockey position for position. It’s unfair that someone has to lose.
“I thought we played a great game. I don’t think we left anything on the field. This group of girls did some amazing things this season we didn’t expect to do.”
“I think it’s always disappointing to lose, but when you look at the bigger picture, we had some really great accomplishments,” Mannino said. “Fifth consecutive SOL title, we won districts, we went to the state semis, which is more than we could say the last four years. Last year we didn’t even make it to states.”
The Patriots have set the bar high for future teams, winning the program’s fifth straight conference championship, capturing the program’s first District One 3A title in 20 years and earning a berth in the state semifinals.
“We took it one game at a time,” Spratt said. “We didn’t look ahead to any opponent. When we were in the SOL, we didn’t look ahead to districts, and when we were in districts, we didn’t look ahead to states.
“With this group of girls that is strong in so many positions, it was hard to say, ‘Mark their center forward.’ We had a number of players that contributed defensively and offensively. We were just a really strong team and accomplished a lot of the goals we wanted to.”
Lever echoed a similar sentiment.
“I think the difference between this year and past years is that this year it’s been more of a team effort, and you can definitely see how different the field hockey is between this year and past years,” Lever said. “Not only are we bonded as a team, but we use each other and we trust each other, rather than it being an individual game.”
While they came up one game short of advancing to the state title game, that could not diminish their accomplishments in the COVID-shortened season.
“I think just winning a district title in itself is amazing.,” Lever said. “And getting here – as a team, we have worked so hard all season, especially us working toward a goal we didn’t even know what it would be since we didn’t know what our season was going to look like was amazing in itself.”
“Winning that district championship was the highlight of this entire year,” Bullard said. “It’s been 20 years since we have been able to do that, and even though we didn’t make it to the state final, we made history at East.”
Spratt bids farewell to a special senior class.
“Day in day out at practice, they showed up whether they were a starter or non-starter,” the East coach said. “I often told them at pivotal parts of our season – ‘Just because you’re a non-starter does not mean you don’t have a pivotal role on this team. We are practicing against you. You are making our starters better.
“I had some seniors who played big minutes for us in big games even if it was coming off the bench. I said to them at the end, ‘Seniors, you are such a special group, not just on the field but off the field.’ They are just a really nice group of kids.”
Central Bucks East closed out a historic season with a 13-2 overall record (9-1 SOL).
Emmaus 0-0-0-1 1
Central Bucks East 0-0-0-0 0
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