Marshall draws Haverford School into Inter-Ac lead

HAVERFORD >> The game long since decided, Jack Marshall folded his 6-foot-6 frame into a crouch once more with 2.2 seconds showing on the clock at Haverford School’s Sabol Field. In two fluid motions – forward, then up – the massive defenseman swung away gracefully, ball in the pocket of his long pole as the buzzer sounded.

Marshall’s 15th faceoff victory Friday was possibly the cleanest of the night, a departure from the contentious scrums he invited and from which his Fords often emerged from with precious possession.

Marshall’s faceoff prowess played as large a role as any factor in the torrid start that helped the Fords bury Malvern Prep, 16-12, Friday — as much as the vast array of attacking luminaries or the seldom-used but often brilliant Alex DeMarco in goal.

The final margin paints an overly flattering portrait of the distance between the Inter-Ac rivals in a game the Fords (13-4, 6-0) dominated start to finish. Haverford led 6-0 after one blitzkrieg of a quarter, 11-4 at halftime and 14-5 when Keyveat Postell deposited his fifth goal of the game 69 seconds into the fourth quarter.

Five goals in the final 4:18, including two in the last 10 seconds, hung some bunting on an otherwise unsightly afternoon for the Friars (11-4, 4-2).

Marshall fueled the first-quarter haymaker that irreparably dazed Malvern. The High Point commit finished an average 15-for-27 at the X. But he compiled an 11-for-17 mark before halftime, perpetuating the Fords’ offensive momentum. He also neutralized what appeared to be an edge for Malvern in junior Sean Christman, but Marshall got the better of his club teammate more often than not.

Marshall’s stature doesn’t lend itself to faceoffs, deviating from the low-to-the-ground, grappler archetype. Marshall is technically adept, taking draws until his sophomore year when a growth spurt stretched his 6-foot-2 frame to the build of a basketball center and swapping his short-stick for a height-appropriate pole. With main faceoff man Joel Trucksess, a Germantown Academy transfer, ineligible for league play, Marshall had no problem stepping into the role, while also balancing his defensive duties.

“I’ve always had a little bit of a background towards it,” Marshall said. “I love competing for the 50/50 groundballs, and coach (Mark) Petrone works with us a lot when we’re facing off. It’s a fun experience.”

He’s had to adapt his approach. Hence the introduction of mayhem at the X, allowing his reach and outstanding wing players, the indefatigable Alec Haas and Dox Aitken with his superior physicality, to win the war on the ground even if the first battle at the whistle slants in the opponents’ favor.

Keyveat Postell to John Nostrant. That was nice. 3-0 Fords. pic.twitter.com/zvgnuejM07

— Matthew De George (@sportsdoctormd) April 29, 2016

“Now it’s just making it a 50/50 groundball and outcompeting and outworking someone else,” Marshall said.

Marshall’s influence was particularly poignant given the recent history between the rivals. The Fords upset Malvern, 10-9, on the road April 12 behind five unanswered, fourth-quarter goals, capped by Tommy McNamara’s dodge to the cage in the waning seconds.

“Play like the fourth quarter against Malvern,” has become a rallying cry, though the first quarter Friday gives it a run for its money as the best 12 minutes of the season. It also sums to an unthinkable demolition of Malvern by an 11-0 spread over 24 minutes.

Forry Smith. It’s 6. It’s astounding. pic.twitter.com/jazrGYk4Ty

— Matthew De George (@sportsdoctormd) April 29, 2016

“I think definitely in the fourth quarter (last time), we played really, really well,” Aitken said. “We were flying around and making all the right plays, and that kind of differed from the first three quarters. We kept saying this week, ‘let’s play the whole game like the fourth quarter of the first time we played Malvern.’ And it worked out.”

Aitken, a University of Virginia signee and widely regarded as the best Class of 2016 recruit nationwide, took charge early. He scored four times and set up another goal. Two of his first-half markers came within 40 seconds of potentially momentum-shifting Malvern tallies, with unofficial assists by Marshall.

Postell opened the scoring 24 seconds in off a feed from Forry Smith (two goals, two assists), then capped the first-half onslaught with 1:19 left, assisted by Brendan O’Neill. That came 30 seconds after Johnny Nostrant scored, and Nostrant reaffirmed the Fords’ control when he tallied the first marker of the second half, nearly seven minutes into a sedate third quarter, to make it 12-4.

Aitken a bounce pass to Postell. 9-3 Fords. 2:52 to half. pic.twitter.com/T5hHbBriFj

— Matthew De George (@sportsdoctormd) April 29, 2016

While the Fords charged out of the gates, Malvern sleepwalked. Adam Goldner scored two goals in quick succession to start the second quarter, but nothing worked for long, with Haverford adjusting well.

“Whenever anything like this happens, you’ve got to keep your head up,” said Kyle Anderson, who scored twice despite constant attention from Chris Morrison and the Haverford defensive corps. “It was definitely tough. They came ready to play, and I don’t think we worked hard enough. I don’t think we did the little things in the game that we should’ve. And they did. They executed well, and we didn’t really have much of an answer for them.”

AJ Traynor and Quinn McCahon tallied two goals and two assists each, but the margin was so wide that a serious comeback threat never materialized.

Instead, the Fords earned the inside line at another Inter-Ac championship, needing just two wins to clinch a share of the crown and three to defend their outright title.

“It’s huge,” Marshall said. “There’s not a better feeling than beating Malvern, especially two teams as a senior, three times last year. We just have to keep moving forward. We can see them again later this season in the Inter-Ac (Challenge), so we just have to get ready again.”

Also in the Inter-Ac League:

Episcopal Academy 8, Penn Charter 7 >> Jake Martellucci and Benjamin Valdes each recorded hat tricks as the Churchmen (5-8, 4-2) squeaked out the victory. Connor Ringwalt supplied two helpers, and Gab Furey paired a goal with an assist.

In the Catholic League:

Archbishop Carroll 13, Father Judge 8 >> Adam Ritter paired five goals with three helpers, Brendan George scored four times to go with two assists and Sean Kearney notched a hat trick to go with two assists for the Patriots.