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#9 Upper Dublin 13, #8 North Penn 9
TOWAMENCIN – “Heart.”It was just one word, but the cheer of Upper Dublin’s players as they broke their huddle after a hastily called timeout by North Penn early in the second half of Thursday’s district second round game may have said it all.
“Heart was pretty much the definition of the game,” Upper Dublin junior Kelly Cross said. “It came down to who wanted it more. I think we just played our hearts out today literally and left everything we had on the field.”
And because they did, in one unforgettable afternoon, the Flying Cardinals captured magic in a bottle, seizing control of Thursday’s game from the outset and playing with the kind of calm confidence that belied their youth.
“Everything we did today just came naturally,” Cross said. “We worked so well as a team, and it was definitely our best game all season.
“There were just times when a girl was wide open in the middle and not only did she catch it, but she made the goal. Things like that don’t always happen for our team, so it was awesome that everything just clicked today.”
Cross had a hand in nine goals, scoring five and assisting on four others, and perhaps even more importantly, the junior standout was a calming presence on the field.
“She was very relaxed,” coach Dee Cross said. “I told them before the game, - you’re a team of juniors, and everybody is saying ‘Wow, this is a great experience for next year,’ but why not this year? You don’t know what next year will bring.’“They started to believe that, and Kelly sort of got them going. It was unbelievable. They never faltered. They were steady the whole game, knowing there was someone out there calming them down. They all picked up for each other, which was amazing.”
Brooke Callahan also had a monster game for the Flying Cardinals, scoring five goals.
“This was the best game of Brooke’s career by far,” coach Cross said.
Emily Hitchings added two goals and an assist, and Kaley Weinstein – the team’s lone starting senior – had one goal. Taylor D’Ginto had one assist.
“They played with heart and didn’t want to be denied,” coach Cross said. “In a game like that, you start to get better when you start believing. They really fed off of that.
“They executed everything we talked about. They did not falter, and they didn’t get intimidated or nervous. From the very beginning, they had a different game face on today. It was really, really exciting to watch them play the way they played today.
“North Penn is a great team. We know they are stacked, and our kids knew they had their work cut out for them. The kids know how big this win was because they know they beat a good team.”For the Maidens, Brenda McDermott and Macie Hauck each had three goals and one assist. Rachel Shaw had two goals, and Garrie Grenfell added one goal.
The start of Thursday’s game was delayed by close to two hours because of a thunderstorm, and while that could have given the Flying Cardinals an opportunity to develop a case of nerves, they used it to their advantage instead.
“We went inside the school, and we were just doing team bonding activities to make sure we weren’t going to get too cramped up or start thinking too much about the game – we kept our mind off of it,” Kelly Cross said. “We stayed loose and just had fun.
“That’s how we came out onto the field today, playing for fun and playing as loose as we could. When we came back out, we were ready to go.”
“Going into the game, we had a lot of confidence,” Callahan added. “During our two-hour delay, we had team bonding, and I think that really helped us go in loose and ready for the game, knowing if we worked as a team we could come out with a win.”
That’s not to say there wasn’t an intimidation factor going up against a Maiden squad that – under coach Jami Wilus – has been the class of the SOL.
“North Penn – ever since I have been in high school I have always heard about how good their sports teams were,” Kelly Cross said. “It was definitely a huge deal to beat a team like that.”
From the outset, it was the Flying Cardinals that set the tone, opening up a lead of 5-1 and still holding a 6-2 lead with possession of the ball as time winding down in the half. A turnover allowed Brenda McDermott to go the length of the field for a goal to make it a 6-3 game at the intermission.
“That was the worst case scenario that could have happened,” coach Cross said. “We obviously wanted to run the clock down, get a nice shot, and for them to come down and score with 20 seconds left cou
ld have absolutely been a back breaker.
ld have absolutely been a back breaker.“They were just so focused today. I think they were sort of numb to the fact that they weren’t supposed to win that game.”
The Flying Cardinals scored off the opening draw of the second half, scoring a quick goal to go on top 7-3.
“In lacrosse, it’s all about momentum,” Callahan said. “Even after the first half when they scored a goal at the very end, at halftime we came together, and our coach gave us a great pep talk.
“We came back on the field knowing we were not going to give North Penn any momentum, and that in order to win this game we had to be on top the whole entire game.”
The Flying Cardinals came up with the ball on the ensuing draw, but North Penn’s Rachel Shaw gained possession for the Maidens, setting the stage for a McDermott goal on a free position.
Two minutes later Cross found a cutting Callahan, who scored on a tough shot across goal to put the Cardinals on top 8-4. Then it was Emily Hitchings finding Weinstein for the score, prompting Wilus to call a timeout.
“I think the key that we have at Upper Dublin this year is that we work so well as a team, all the way from Anna Lauer our goalie to our defense to our middies to our offense,” Callahan said. “We all play as a team, and we have been together for a while, especially the juniors.
“One of our strong suits this year is when we have a play - it doesn’t matter if you’re a decoy player or if you’re the one scoring the goal, everyone puts in 100 percent, and I think that’s why our plays are so successful this year, and I think that’s a major contributor to all our goals this season.”
McDermott found Shaw for the score to make it a 9-5 game, but D’Ginto hit Cross with a pass for the score, and the Cardinals led 10-5. The Maidens won the draw, but Cross forced a turnover and beat every defender in her path for the score.
After Upper Dublin won another draw, it was Cross – from behind the cage – finding Callahan for the score, and the Cardinals led 12-5 with 10:30 remaining.
“We talked about situations, we told them what we knew about what North Penn does on the draw,” coach Cross said. “They executed. Obviously, North Penn has a height advantage on us player for player.
“The girls just showed that positioning was so important if they couldn’t get the reach. They really listened to what we were saying to them and just didn’t back down, and that really set the tone. It’s a game of momentum, and it’s a game of possession, and we definitely did great on the draws.” “We work on draw controls in practice all the time,” Callahan added. “A major thing we did today was we really boxed out all the players on the draws, and that really helped.
“Also, everyone did an awesome job going for ground balls, and they didn’t really let North Penn intimidate them, and I think that really helped us come out and be successful.”
Hauck scored for the Maidens, but Cross connected on a no-doubt-about-it free position goal, giving Upper Dublin a 13-6 lead with 8:40 remaining. The Maidens scored three unanswered goals, but it was too little too late.
“Upper Dublin dominated every aspect of the game,” Maiden coach Jami Wilus said. “Kelly (Cross) really controlled the entire midfield play and came up with big checks on our players in transition and was very calm and poised offensively.
“We didn’t play well. We didn’t do the little things on the field to win a tight game or any game for that matter.”
As the final horn sounded, the Flying Cardinals converged for an emotional celebration. The players didn’t need a lot of words to describe what this win felt like.
“Amazing,” Kelly Cross said. “There’s no other way to explain it. I’m still shaking.”
“It was amazing,” Callahan said. “I just wanted to cry and hug my whole team because I was so thrilled that we finally did it.
“Upper Dublin finally made it past the second round, which hasn’t happened in a while, and it was just the best feeling in the world. We knew the whole game if they got momentum, they could come back, and there was never one point where you could say we won the game because North Penn is an excellent team, and they’re always coming back with more goals. At the end, it was like - finally the game is over, and we had the victory.”
The Flying Cardinals will face top-seeded Downingtown East in a quarterfinal game on Saturday.
#11 Council Rock North 16, #6 Radnor 15
Pat Toner has been part of more than a few big wins in her career, but the Indians’ co-coach admits that Thursday’s upset of the perennial Central League power – which came after Jackie Strange scored with three seconds remaining in regulation - is near the top of her list of all-time wins.
That was why, as her team was leaving the field, Toner asked her players to stop for a moment and soak in the moment.
“I pulled them aside, and I said, ‘Guys, I have been coaching for 35 years. You get several of these moments – don’t forget this. Stop for a second, and think about what you just did and that you did it together and you did it with class. There will be a time 20 years from now when you’ll tell your kids about this game, and they’re going to say – Oh mom, are you going to tell us the same story about beating Radnor?’” Toner said. “This was a team effort.”
Senior Becky Ely heeded Toner’s advice and took in the moment.
“I will never forget this,” she said. “It was just so much fun to be with everyone you’re so close to and be that excited.”
Toner did her best to ensure that her players would not be intimidated going against a Radnor squad that has been the standard bearer for lacrosse in the state.
“I told them before we left school, ‘Take a look around your gym. You’re going to go to a gym that has all kinds of championship trophies and banners, and it can be a very intimidating place. Take a look at your gym and the banners that are up there for state championships. Don’t be intimidated by anything you see,’” Toner recalled. “They really weren’t.
“We have been on all different ends of this. We beat Boyertown in 1998 when our own newspaper said we’d be lucky to get out of the game with a 30-0 score. We were close to the last seed, but we won. Anything can happen. I’ve also been the better team and lost. I’ve seen all of it. This is why you play the game. Otherwise, they’d crown the team based on paper.”
Ely and her teammates who were part of last fall’s hockey team certainly know all about playing the role of giant killer. The Indians – in a third round district game - upset third-seeded Owen J. Roberts 1-0 in a game the Wildcats dominated.
“The whole day we were talking about that,” Ely said. “We went to Owen J. Roberts, and they had such nice fields. We knew how great they were, and it was so intimidating.
“The stats were unbelievable – how many shots they took, how many corners they took, but we just held them off. We had two shots and ended up winning 1-0. It was a huge upset. Everyone kept talking about how this was so much like that game.
“We knew we were the underdog, but we realized – just like the Owen J. Roberts game – that’s why you play the game.”
The Indians didn’t look the part of the 11th-seeded team as they roared out of the gate and took an 8-4 lead over the sixth-seeded Red Raiders.
“I think we came out, and we really wanted it,” Ely said. “We were the lower seed, and we knew we had nothing to lose.
“Nobody had expectations of us at all. Radnor is known to be such a great team, but we came out on fire, and we really had our heads on straight today. We really played as a team. A lot of people stepped up and did a great job.
“A huge thing about the game was draw controls and ground balls. Our coach always says that’s what it comes down to for each game. A lot of times, the team that got the draw was the one that scored.”
Down but not out, the Red Raiders rallied to knot the score 14-14 with 3:14 remaining in regulation. Radnor took a 15-14 lead with 2:21 remaining, and it looked like the game might be over when – with less than a minute remaining – the Red Raiders were awarded a free position.
“I remember looking at the clock and seeing there was so little time left and just being so disappointed that we had come this far and we had a great game – everyone had played so well,” Ely said. “I closed my eyes. I didn’t want our season to end, but I knew if it did end, we had a great season.
“A huge reason I didn’t want it to end was because I just love everyone on the team, and it’s just so much fun.”
The Indians might have had an idea things were going their way when Radnor’s eight-meter shot ricocheted off the post, allowing Rock North’s Lindsay Rheiner to gain possession. With 44 seconds remaining, Kara Magley (Rheiner assist) hit pay dirt with a goal that knotted the score.
On the ensuing draw, the Indians gained possession of the loose ball, setting the stage for Strange’s heroics. Rheiner won the draw, tossing the ball in the air as the final horn sounded and the emotional celebration began.
“This was probably one of the top five games I have ever been associated with,” Toner said. “It was a really fun game.”
“It’s crazy,” Ely said. “Our team – on the bus ride home – we were all going crazy. It was so much fun. It was an awesome game.
“I’m just so glad we can still keep playing together. I’m not positive if I’m playing in college next year, and I didn’t want to end my lacrosse season.”
Magley once again led the Indians, contributing six goals and an assist. Rheiner added three goals and four assists, and Hannah Plappert had one goal and two assists. Mikaela Gribbin contributed one goal while Ely had four assists and Kara Le, one assist. Taylor Beck stopped seven shots in goal.
The Indians will face third-seeded Garnet Valley in a quarterfinal game on Saturday.
#5 Springfield (Delco) 14, #12 Hatboro-Horsham 10
The Hatters gave the tournament’s fifth-seeded team all it could handle, taking a 6-5 lead into halftime before Springfield rallied for the win.
Courtnee Daley led the Hatters with three goals and one assist. Lizzy Carr and Nicole Beck both had two goals and one assist. Julie McKay, Katie McKay and Laura Cresta each added one goal. Goalie Jackie Giovinazzo was credited with 12 saves.
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