Macie Hauck scored her third and most important goal of the day with 1:08 remaining in regulation, propelling the North Penn Maidens to a dramatic 11-10 win over Conestoga in a battle for the seventh and final berth in the upcoming PIAA Class AAAA Tournament.
“Honestly, I don’t know how many people would have expected us to be here in the beginning of the year,” coach Jami Wilus said. “Our league coaches said we only had two players on first team and one on second team, and every other team had more all-league selections.
“For us to be in this position – going back to states – is an unbelievable feeling. We’re the only SOL team (in states) for the second year in a row. We pulled it together at the end of the season."
Senior Abbie Hartman led the Maidens with five goals while Halie Lear added a pair. Rachel Shaw had one goal, and Dani Horn had one assist and five draw controls. Goalie Sarah Prall had 11 saves.
“Our seniors didn’t want this to be our last game,” Wilus said. “Abbie scored five goals, and Kaitlin Colbridge ran our transition game.
“(Goalie) Sarah Prall had an amazing second half with a number of saves on free positions shots at the end. It was a really good team effort. Overall, the seniors seemed to take the leadership of the team to the next level.”
The two teams were deadlock 7-7 at halftime, and the Maidens had a 10-8 lead with four minutes remaining only to watch the Pioneers rally to knot the score. After Hauck’s go-ahead goal, Shaw came up with the ball on the ensuing draw, allowing the Maidens to hold on for the big win.
The win came on the heels of back-to-back losses to Springfield (Delco) and Downingtown East.
“Even though we lost to Downingtown East, we knew we didn’t play a complete game,” Wilus said. “We came back at practice and refocused.
“The girls played with a lot of intensity tonight. I don’t think it was pretty all the time, but we got goals when we needed them, and we stopped them when we needed to.”
The Maidens will face the District One champion in the opening round of the state tournament.
- Log in to post comments
0
