All-Delco Girls Lacrosse: Carroll, Agnes Irwin boast three first-team stars each
In addition to Player of the Year Sam Swart of Archbishop Carroll, the rest of the All-Delco team includes:
Julianne Puckette, Radnor: The senior attacker saw her junior campaign cut short via a second major knee injury of her career, but Puckette made up for lost time, leading the Raiders to a PIAA Class 2A title. The All-American scored a Delco-best 97 goals to go with 14 assists. Puckette was the unquestioned MVP of the finale romp over Kennard-Dale with nine goals, a PIAA finals record, and an assist. Three times she scored six goals in a game, including games of six goals and an assist twice in the District 1 Class 2A playoffs. In eight postseason games, the Lehigh signee scored 37 goals, the same number that the Raiders allowed in the playoffs. Puckette was named an academic All-American.
Katie Crager, Episcopal Academy: The junior attacker earned All-American recognition for powering the Churchwomen to the Inter-Ac title and a 21-win season. Crager finished fourth in Delco with 78 goals and sixth with 100 points; she was second on the Churchwomen in each category. Consistency was the hallmark of Crager’s success. She scored in each of EA’s 26 games, 18 times scoring three or more times. She tallied 23 markers in a five-game span late in the regular season that helped EA clinch the league crown, four of them five-goal games. She added a hat trick in the 10-9 win over Agnes Irwin May 2. Crager is committed to Georgetown.
Lila Barker, Agnes Irwin: The senior attacker led the way for the Owls with 63 goals and 24 assists, as Agnes Irwin finished second in the Inter-Ac and exacted revenge on EA in the Pennsylvania Independent Schools Athletic Association final. Barker orchestrated the final triumph, scoring three times and dishing an assist in a 14-7 decision. Barker blistered Baldwin and Germantown Academy for six goals each. She added four markers in delivering Archbishop Carroll its only loss. The two-time All-American and academic All-American contributed a pair of seven-point games (three goals, four assists vs. Hill School; five and two vs. Notre Dame) to book the PAISAA rematch with EA. Barker, a University of Virginia signee, tied for 11th in Delco in goals and tied for ninth in points.
READ: The full list of All-Delco honorees
Bridget Whitaker, Springfield: The play of the senior midfielder on both ends of the field propelled the Cougars to within a goal of the PIAA Class 3A title. Whitaker finished second on the Cougars with 51 goals and led the way with 19 assists. She scored in every game except one. She tallied four goals in the District 1 quarterfinal win over West Chester Rustin that qualified Springfield for states, and fired home six goals in the states opening win over Exeter. Whitaker scored three times to book Springfield’s spot in the state final via a 12-11 win over Downingtown East. The two-time All-Delco will continue her career at Temple.
Claire Nappi, Notre Dame: Though the Irish finished a distant third in the Inter-Ac behind Agnes Irwin and Episcopal, Nappi helped ND easily handle the rest of the league. The senior midfielder bound for the University of North Carolina finished second on the Irish with 42 goals and third with 59 points. She scored four goals in a win over Germantown Academy and pumped in six to go with a helper against Merion Mercy. Nappi added league hat tricks against Penn Charter and Springside Chestnut Hill and tallied three goals in the first round of the PAISAA tournament against the Quakers.
Katie Detwiler, Archbishop Carroll: As much as Swart’s brilliance powered the Patriots, Detwiler’s steadfast midfield play also contributed greatly to a monumental first state title. The junior finished second on the team with 57 goals and added 12 assists. Like Swart, Detwiler recorded a hat trick in the PIAA final win over Springfield, 9-8. She added five goals in the semis against Garnet Valley (after hitting the Jags for four goals and an assist in their regular-season encounter). The Loyola commit and All-American scored four goals on four occasions, including four and two assists in a win over Radnor. Detwiler added three goals and two assists in topping Springfield in the regular season.
Madi O’Brien, Garnet Valley: The senior midfielder led a balanced group of scorers for the Jaguars, who qualified for the PIAA Class 3A semifinals. Six Jags scored 37 or more goals while four collected 70 or more points, with O’Brien as the primary facilitator. She finished second with 35 assists to augment 38 goals. Her 73 points were good for fourth on Garnet, but O’Brien’s two-way play separated her from the pack. O’Brien recorded 11 games of four points or more, including two-goal, three-assist outings in the first two rounds of the District 1 Class 3A playoffs. The senior All-American will continue her career at the University of Southern California.
READ: Final girls lacrosse stat leaders
Maria Pansini, Agnes Irwin: The junior midfielder did some of her best work on the defensive end, and her two-way threat steered the Owls to 21 wins. Pansini impacted the score sheet with 38 goals and 16 assists, tied for fifth-most on the Owls in both categories. More often, the All-American applied her stamp on games defensively and with her athleticism in transition. Pansini accumulated massive totals draw controls (81), caused turnovers (58) and ground balls (44), teaming with freshman sister Natalie in that regard. Maria tallied multiple goals in 13 outings, including three-goal, two-assists days against Notre Dame of Massachusetts and Springside Chestnut Hill. An academic All-American, Pansini is committed to join her older sister, 2016 All-Delco Laura, at Princeton.
Izzy Rohr, Episcopal Academy: The esteem in which the defender is held was clear when she was the only sophomore named among Southeastern Pennsylvania’s All-Americans. Rohr’s dogged defense and prowess on draws backstopped the Churchwomen to 21 wins and the Inter-Ac title. Rohr was among EA’s leaders in both draw controls and ground balls for the PAISAA runner-up. Rohr also scored twice, both in Inter-Ac encounters with Notre Dame, but that was only a small portion of what the Penn commit brought to the table.
Nicole Massimino, Radnor: A defender by trade, the senior All-American excelled in all facets for the PIAA Class 2A champions. With Massimino heading the defense, Radnor surrendered 7.5 goals per game, an average that dropped to 4.5 in eight postseason affairs. Massimino contributed offensively with 30 goals and 21 assists and turned up the offense as the playoffs wore on. Massimino recorded hat tricks in the District 1 Class 2A semifinal against Gwynedd Mercy and states opener against York Catholic and a career-best four goals in the district final trouncing of Bishop Shanahan. Massimino, who was also an All-Delco as a sophomore and named an academic All-American this year, will play at the University of Notre Dame.
Rachel Matey, Archbishop Carroll: The senior defender bolstered a back line that allowed just 4.1 goals per game on the way to a state title. Including the Catholic League playoffs that ended with Carroll achieving its 17th straight title, the Patriots conceded just 18 goals in 12 games against league foes. They posted as many shutouts (five) as games of nine or more goals allowed overall. Matey’s shutdown defense was a key component in the stinginess. The James Madison signee also supplied 12 goals — including a hat trick and an assist in the PCL semifinal triumph over Bonner & Prendergast — and was among the top draw controllers in the area. In the PIAA final, she led the way with a game-high eight DCs.
Hailey Andress, Agnes Irwin: The senior regains her spot on the All-Delco team after being displaced by Springfield’s Julianne Clemens as a junior. Andress’ second All-Delco nod stems from leading Agnes Irwin to a 21-5 mark and the PAISAA title. She made five saves in the finale, a 14-7 decision that avenged a pair of one-goal setbacks to archrival Episcopal. Andress’ season-highs in saves came in overtime losses — a dozen stops each in the 13-12 loss to EA and a 7-6 setback to Ridgewood (N.J.). Andress tallied 202 saves and grabbed 34 ground balls. Against a national schedule, Agnes Irwin conceded just seven goals per game; in 12 Inter-Ac contests, only Episcopal (twice) cracked the eight-goal mark against the Owls. The All-American will continue her career at Cornell.
