Quick turnaround doesn’t help Radnor as Harriton turns tables
WEST GOSHEN — When Radnor played a Central League girls lacrosse game at Harriton in early April, Raiders junior Ellie Mueller stood on the sideline and helped keep the statistical charts updated.
An ankle sprain made her a spectator as her team rolled to an easy victory.
Mueller was on the turf at West Chester East’s Harold Zimmerman Stadium Saturday afternoon, but her legs, which had to go through two games in less than 24 hours, let her down again as the Raiders dropped a 13-7 decision to Harriton in the second round of the PIAA Class 3A tournament.
The win put the District 1 runner-up Rams (22-2), who are competing in the state tourney for the first time in four years, in the semifinal round Tuesday against Downingtown West (19-5), which knocked off District 1 champion Conestoga, 12-11, in overtime in the second game of the doubleheader at Zimmerman.
Radnor played its state-tournament opener against Parkland Friday after sitting out three days’ worth of weather-related postponements, then was right back in action against a rested Harriton squad Saturday.
“I think we all felt it,” Mueller said. “Especially in our legs.”
What Harriton felt most was the excitement of keeping its season alive after the disappointing way the last three had ended earlier than expected. The Rams had been overwhelmed in draw controls when Radnor rolled to a 23-12 victory in the game played at Harriton April 2.
“We’re a different team now than we were then,” Harriton coach George Dick said. “Whatever they did that (April) day against us, things went their way. Today, we controlled the tempo, had a good game plan that we stuck to, and we got a great team win.”
Senior Allison Schwab accounted for Harriton’s first two goals and had three by halftime. Junior Lucy Dwyer also tossed in three first-half goals, while Maddie Henderson and Emily Stewart came up with three of their four draw controls, and Dwyer had two of her three controls off draws in the opening 25 minutes, giving Harriton a 10-5 edge in the circle at the break.
Schwab and Dwyer finished with four goals, freshman Grace Dwyer chipped in with two goals and a pair of assists, and Stewart scored twice in the second half for the Rams.
“Every day since our last Radnor game we’ve practiced draw controls,” Stewart said. “Especially at Friday’s practice. And that really helped us today.”
Mueller notched three goals for Radnor, which got only two scores – by Mueller and junior Julia Rigolizzo 56 seconds apart – in the second half.
“No excuses,” Radnor head coach Brooke Fritz, who had only three seniors on her roster, said. “They played well, and we just couldn’t stop them from getting draw controls.
“We’d get a little momentum, start getting close, and then we’d make a mistake and they’d come back and turn things around again. We just weren’t able to catch a break.”
Schwab was delighted that she and her classmates would have the chance to continue practicing and play a semifinal round game Tuesday.
“We just go out to play our game and do what we know how to do,” she said. “We had been knocked out of districts in the second round for three years in a row. That’s why winning these state games means so much to us.”
Katelin Williams was another happy Rams senior.
“We learned from that first game we played against them,” Williams said. “And I think they might have overlooked us a little because they had beaten us so badly.”
