Springfield, Strath Haven proving they belong in state semis

LOWER MERION >> Mike Gerzabek hasn’t had time to count the games over the months. But the number doesn’t come as a surprise.

When the Springfield senior takes the field at Penncrest Tuesday night for a PIAA boys lacrosse semifinal contest against Strath Haven, it’ll be his 73rd game wearing the blue and gold script “S” in 2015-16.

Tuesday marks game No. 26 of the lacrosse season, adding to the 23 appearances as the goalie for a boys soccer team that made the PIAA Class AAA semis and 24 on a hockey squad that played for the Flyers Cup Class A crown. All told, Gerzabek’s teams have won 55 games, a healthy .764 winning percentage.

But Gerzabek doesn’t have time to reminisce just yet, not with more history potentially around the corner.

“I keep looking forward,” Gerzabek said. “I can’t look back yet.”

The tantalizing matchup of Central League rivals is plenty to look forward to. It’s the third time the teams have hooked up this season. Haven (19-6) took advantage of Springfield’s sluggish start in a 7-5 win, April 5, which seems like a lifetime — or two lacrosse seasons — ago. Springfield (18-7) gained a modicum of revenge in the District One third-place game, springing a fourth-quarter comeback for a 5-4 win on a Nick Martin goal with six seconds to play on the Penncrest turf 12 days ago.

Both teams enter with credible chip-on-their-shoulder mentalities. Springfield, the 10th seed in the District One tournament, will be wearing home jerseys for the first time since May 17, it’s district opener. The Cougars started the season 1-5, losing their first three Central League contests.

Yet the 2015 District One champions find themselves in the state semis for a second straight season, hoping to atone for being routed by another Central foe, Radnor, 12-5, last year at Haverford.

The redemption narrative is one that Gerzabek vaguely recognizes from the soccer pitch.

“I think they’re different, because in the beginning of this year, we were a bit choppy — sort of like the soccer season, but we didn’t get blown out as much (in soccer),” the Cabrini-bound attackman said. “But we made a great comeback.”

Strath Haven, meanwhile, boasts a youthful, talented squad that counts only five contributing seniors. (Not to be outdone, Springfield uses three seniors in its rotation.) Haven surmounted midseason injuries to captain Jack Borbee and defenseman Michael Scott to claim a share of its first Central League title, a tremendous honor for coach Jef Hewlings, one of the elder statesmen of the Southeastern PA coaching community.

Sans Scott and Borbee, the Panthers scraped into the PIAA tournament, their first appearance since the competition’s its inception in 2008.

“No one ever thought we would get this far,” Borbee said Saturday. “No one ever thought we’d get this far. People looked down on us. … But we brought it today and we showed them that the Central League, we’re making a run for states, and we’re not done yet.”

No one will be offended to call the two Delco foes marked underdogs in Saturday’s PIAA quarterfinals. Springfield had been drubbed in the district semis by eventual champ Upper Dublin, 9-2, while Avon Grove had handled Haven, 13-8.

But when they switched dance partners in states, the results varied greatly. Haven girded itself defensively late to oust Upper Dublin, 10-9. Springfield controlled Avon Grove for three and a half quarters, then weathered a late storm that equalized the game and pulled ahead on Kyle Long’s last-minute goal for a 7-6 victory.

Those triumphs guarantee a second straight all-Delaware County “eastern final” and a third straight Delco representative in the championships game. The last two — Penncrest in 2014 and Radnor last year — won it all.

That’s a ringing endorsement for the degree of seasoning provided by the Central League’s gauntlet of a schedule. It’s not just that Springfield and Strath Haven prevailed in Saturday’s quarters; it’s the manner of victory, the gutsy, composed fourth-quarter execution, that attests to how battle-tested each team is.

“You play through these moments,” Springfield coach Tom Lemieux said. “Our league is unbelievable. You play through these moments all year. This is nothing new to us. Some of these teams come in here and they’re so good in their league, but they rarely get these in-game opportunities to get the experience that we’ve gotten.”