Owen J. Roberts drops Central Bucks East, advances to district championship
BUCKINGHAM >> Confidence is a commodity Owen J. Roberts does not lack.
Perspective is not something in short supply, either.
The Wildcats were full of confidence coming out of Tuesday’s District 1 Class AAA playoff semifinal at Central Bucks East. The 2-0 victory moves them into Saturday’s championship game with Perkiomen Valley — a rematch of the Pioneer Athletic Conference title tilt, which the ‘Cats won by a handy 3-0 margin.
Confidence will not overrule Roberts’ preparation for the game. Memories of the teams’ two regular-season meetings — PV swept them, accounting for OJR’s lone losses in league play — will factor in their game preparations.
“It certainly helps the girls, to know the team is beatable,” Roberts head coach Amy Hoffman said after seeing her club handle top-seeded East. “But we’re not going in there overconfident. The girls are well aware of how we lost the games.”
Owen J’s confidence snowballed against C.B. East. The fourth-seeded Wildcats (17-2) kept the Patriots (17-2) scrambling in a 0-0 first half, then playing from behind over the last 26 minutes of the second.
“It helped a lot, keeping the ball down there (East end),” OJR’s Natalie Fuertsch said. “It was not a stressful situation. It was pretty laid back. I like them.”
Fuertsch produced the ultimate game-winner at the 26:19 mark, and Julia Lamb added insurance at 15:09. Roberts had a third chance with 5:13 left, but Lamb’s stroke hit the crossbar and went over.
That mattered little, with OJR’s defense supporting goalie Cayden Jarvis in pursuit of the clean sheet. Jarvis wasn’t required to make any saves on the way to the shutout finish, the Wildcat defense not permitting East any shots on goal.
“The key was the girls played together, played for 60 minutes, played as a team,” Hoffman said. “They finished their opportunities.”
Fuertsch cashed in on Owen J’s first opportunity by converting a pass from Jenna Kirby on a corner play.
“It’s nice to get that first goal, to start off strong,” Fuertsch said.
Lamb’s insurance tally came off a pass from Sophia Murray. With that comfortable lead in place, Owen J maintained its stiff stance on the way to finishing with a whopping 17-0 edge in shots on goal.
“It’s so exciting,” Lamb said. “We know how hyped up we were to be PAC champions. This is the cherry on top.”
The OJR/PV championship showdown will be staged 5:30 p.m. at Methacton.
“We need to go in like it’s a new game,” Lamb said. “They were our biggest competition. We have to play with that mentality.”
“It’s another game where we have to come hard,” Fuertsch added.
The district’s medal-round games offers the possibility of the PAC having the top three seeds for the state playoffs. Methacton will play East for third place Friday.
“It’s amazing we have three PAC teams in it. That shows how a good a league we have.” Fuertsch said.
NOTES >> Owen J. finished with a 7-2 edge in corners over C.B. East. … East goalie Emily Bullard was credited with six saves. … The District 1 champ will open states next Tuesday against the 3/6 Region fourth seed. The runner-up will face off against the District 11 second seed, and the third-place team starts against the District 2 champion.
