Games, Lanzone help Radnor topple top-seeded ’Stoga

WEST GOSHEN >> By the way the games were unfolding in the District One girls lacrosse tournament, with one surprise after another, it seemed fitting that top-seeded Conestoga would prematurely meet its fate, along with the other top-three seeds.
The No. 1 Pioneers, who rolled to the Central League championship, were undefeated prior to Saturday’s district quarterfinal round matchup with ninth-seeded Radnor.
The one team that knows them best is the Raiders.
“All the kids know each other,” Radnor coach Brooke Fritz said. “There are no secrets.”
Emily Games delivered the tie-breaking tally with 13:41 left to play in regulation and Radnor held on for a 13-10 victory at West Chester East.
The Raiders (15-6) meet No. 4 Garnet Valley in the semifinals Tuesday at Downingtown West. The Pioneers (18-1) play 12th-seeded Unionville in the first playback round.
“They had an undefeated season, they were the top seed and we came in as the ninth seed. Beating them as the No. 9 is great for our confidence and preparing us for the next game,” said Games, who finished with three goals and an assist. “We figured out what their strengths were. We know they’re good at rolling the crease and they’re strong at the draw. We worked a lot on that in practice (Friday) and playing really tough defense.”
The Radnor defense made a big difference in the second half. Junior Allison Lanzone was mainly responsible for quieting arguably the best player in the Central League, Conestoga’s Liz Scott, who was held scoreless.
Radnor fell behind by as many as three goals in the first half, but rallied to pull to within one at the break.
“Picking it up in the second half of the first half kind of pumped us up,” Games said. “We knew we had to gel better and work together as a team, and that kind of helped us for the second half.”
Scores by Katie Quinn, Fallon Quinn and Lanzone extended Radnor’s advantage to 13-9.
“In the beginning, we weren’t really following our game plan and I think some of it was just sheer excitement of being out there,” Fritz said. “Some of the game plan included fast breaks, but some of it included slowing down.”
Hope Smith put the Raiders ahead early in the second half, but Maggie Gladden netted the equalizer less than a minute later for the Pioneers.
Games scored the first of her two go-ahead goals in the half in eighth minute, but it didn’t last long. Paige Loose tied the score for the Pioneers in the 10th minute before Games put the Raiders in front to stay moments later.
The Raiders controlled the flow of the second half and capitalized on their opportunities with the ball, something they struggled with in the early going.
“The first half we were down 9-4 in draw controls, and in the second half I know Fallon had five alone,” Fritz said. “It was a huge difference having possession.”
Games and Katie Quinn each recorded three goals and an assist to lead the Raiders on attack. Nine Radnor players found the back of the net.
Radnor received strong all-around performances by Lanzone (one goal, one draw control, three ground balls), Nicole Massimino (one goal, two draw controls, three ground balls, two caused turnovers) and Fallon Quinn (one goal, five draw controls, two ground balls, one caused turnover).