Springfield’s game of keepaway upends Avon Grove in OT

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RADNOR – You brace for the cliché of it, but the more you analyze the facts, the truer it rings.

Springfield’s defensive strategy isn’t just a 10-man plan just because that sounds good in a huddle or forces everyone to focus in defensive drills. From the smallest detail to the actual job of defending one-on-one, it’s all in service of the objective of keeping the ball out of the net, the characteristic that the Cougars have ridden to a pair of state championships.

So you have Saturday’s 6-5 overtime victory over Avon Grove at the Katie Samson Lacrosse Festival, a collision of two programs that have combined for three PIAA titles and three District 1 titles in the last five years. Nominally, the game was won by Jack Spence on a solo move at 1:59 of OT to lead the Cougars in a clash of top teams in the District 1 Class 3A standings at Radnor High School.

But so many small moments were executed perfectly before Spence’s shot tickled the twine. The five goals owed in part to three Jimmy Donegan saves, but that wasn’t a prime factor, either.

What was? Springfield (13-1) outshooting the Red Devils, 33-10, keeping them without a shot in the first quarter. And to follow the logic, that level of dominance (roughly 80 percent of possession would be a fair guess), traces to two factors: Getting the ball, and keeping it.

Zach Broomall was central to the first part by dominating on faceoffs. The converted attackman has come into his own, handling the three guys Avon Grove threw at him with aplomb, going 12-for-13.

Most of those draws were against Avon Grove’s top defender James Chastain, not just a pole designed to prevent Broomall going forward but one of the better defenders in the area. Yet still Broomall rarely lost possession and, combined with Jake Methlie’s cameo to win a draw, the Cougars lost just one of them.

“It’s a fun thing for me when the team relies on you to get the ball for you and keep possession as much as possible,” Broomall said. “It helps us win games when we keep the ball out of their sticks.”

“He’s been killing it,” Spence said. “Freshman year, he was an attackman, and over the course of his career, he’s grown into one of the best faceoff men in PA. It’s fun to watch.”

Keeping the ball after Chastain’s hounding of Broomall isn’t easy, either. Yet Springfield has grown adept at long possessions this season. With a glut of talented midfielders, the Cougars can give opponents fits off the dodge. Knowing when to push the action and when to patiently wait for an opening, though, takes time, and the Cougars illustrated their grasp of that challenge.

They scored four times in the first half, three from Liam DiFonzo attacking the short corners of the defense and beating goalie Zac Hanway low. Avon Grove’s best method of attack was in transition with three such tallies, Zach Augustine twice turning provider after opening the scoring in the second quarter on a goal from Xavier Salley started by a rare turnover caused by Jackson Muller.

But the Cougars resisted the urge to speed things up to match Avon Grove’s pace, even when the Red Devils got even in the fourth quarter via Jeff Devoll with 4:36 to play.

“It’s playing slow, momentum offense, holding the ball so they can’t score,” Spence said. “That’s the way we play. Our coaching staff does a great job, and we follow it.”

Broomall won the faceoff after the equalizer, and Springfield had two shots to win it, Spence and DiFonzo each firing wide. In overtime, Broomall won the draw, but the teams traded turnovers before Springfield settled in. DiFonzo was stuffed by Hanway, who made eight saves, then went wide with a shot. Spence took the restart and shook loose from Chastain, who’d gotten the better of him most of the day.

“He’s a great defenseman, very physical,” Spence said of Chastain. “He has a great stick, too, great hands. But on a matchup like that, you’ve got to keep on going at him, and the more you go at him, the more you find.”

Springfield has battled through injuries, including All-Delco defenseman Pat Clemens leaving the game after landing awkwardly trying to cover the fourth goal. Clemens, who had his leg iced afterward, picked up an assist.

The competition level, the blustery conditions, the early start – it all adds up to a quality win.

“I feel like this is a big character game for us, how we turned it around when we faced adversity,” Broomall said. “I think we did a really good job with it. It’s going to be good for us in the long run.”

Also at the Katie Samson Festival:

Episcopal Academy 8, Radnor 6 >> Gabe Furey scored four goals, including the eventual game-winner, to lead the Churchmen to the win. Rowan Brumbaugh scored twice in the first half as EA led, 6-2, at the break.

Matt Chess made six saves, and Jack Henderson won 12 of 17 draws for EA. Charlie Cunniffe (goal, assist) sealed the game with two minutes to play.

Radnor battled back to get within one in the first minute of the fourth quarter via a Jaden Goldstein goal, but got no closer. Drew Brown scored twice and added an assist, and Damien Raimondo added two goals.

Garnet Valley 11, Downingtown East 6 >> Danny Bradley and Mitch Lachman each posted hat tricks, Bradley adding two assists, as the Jaguars blew open a close game with a 4-0 edge in the third quarter.

Jake Morin paired two goals with an assist, Adam Oldrati went 13-for-20 on draws and Nick Van Horn made 14 saves.

Marple Newtown 12, Great Valley 3 >> Vince Terry paired three goals with three assists, and Luke Jelus added a hat trick as the Tigers rolled. Marlon Weathers (two goals, three assists) and CJ Lane (two, two) added big days for Marple Newtown (6-9).

Archbishop Carroll 13, Lower Merion 12 >> Details of the game were not reported to the Delco Times.

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Matthew De George

Matthew De George
Matthew De George is the Asst. Sports Editor and the lead Union writer for The Daily Times.

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