La Salle’s late resolve rewarded with return trip to PIAA-3A final
LONDON GROVE >> Christopher Mockaitis never lost that flicker of hope.
“I, honestly, had this weird feeling when I was out there that we would come back,” the La Salle senior midfielder said. “We came back last game, why not this game. Trust in each other.”
Yes, the Explorers rallied past Springfield-Delco last Saturday in the PIAA-3A quarterfinals. But that was just a one-goal deficit at halftime.
Tuesday at Avon Grove against Garnet Valley in the semifinals, La Salle was facing a six-goal hole entering the fourth quarter after the Jaguars had the dominated the previous two quarters.
And somehow, some way, the Explorers chipped their way back to even, forced overtime and found a way back to the state final when Dan Mallee collected a ground ball and scored the game-winner in the second overtime to give La Salle a remarkable 11-10 comeback victory.
“It was just really playing our game,” Explorers senior attack Zac Coar said. “We knew what we had to do. We’ve been in situations before where we were down that many goals before. But you know we just saw through it into more motivation to get back there, that state ‘chip.”
In scoring the final seven goals, the Explorers advance to their second-straight PIAA final and try to claim gold they just missed out in last year’s 6-4 loss to Manheim Township when they face Conestoga 4:30 p.m. Saturday at West Chester East. The contest is a rematch of the April 17 regular-season matchup that had the Pioneers topping La Salle 10-7.
“Coming after that really, really tough loss against Seton Hall Prep early in the year where we kind of just got mopped (21-10), we kind of knew people didn’t think that we were the type of La Salle team that we were in the past,” Coar said. “They didn’t believe that we were tough, blue collar, hard-working kids. And that what’s what here just to show people that we know how to do. “
La Salle held a 3-0 lead over GV when Shane Osborne struck with 7:44 in the second quarter before Garnet Valley proceeded to score the next seven goals. And when the Explorers ended that run with Mockaitis’ tally at 8:39 in the third, the Jaguars went on to post the next three goals to grab a 10-4 lead.
But Mallee, who scored all four of his goals in the fourth and OT, pulled the Explorers within five and Mockaitis said that was the tally that got things moving in La Salle’s direction.
“We saw the light at the end of the tunnel and we kept getting brighter every time we scored,” Mockaitis said. “And we felt the momentum and it just kept gaining from there after that first goal.”
It took four minutes before Mallee scored again to make it 10-6 at 6:58 but from there possession began to tilt in the Explorer’s favor and they took advantage. Coar shrugged off a stick check to his helmet on his way to cutting the deficit to 10-7 while Mason Lasasz rocketed in a shot to make it a two-goal game at 3:32.
“Everyone just stepped up,” Coar said. “Everyone knew their role, they knew what they had to do to put the team in the possession to win and everyone just went out and did it. And lucky enough, we got the dub.
From behind the net Mallee connected with Osborne to pull within 10-9 at 3:12 while 58 seconds later Mallee produced the tying goal, coming from behind the net and ripping in an overhand shot.
Each team had chances to go ahead late in regulation and then win in both overtimes, but it was Mallee that finally completed the Explorers’ epic rally and kept La Salle’s hope of a first PIAA title since 2013 alive.
“Our seniors, we’ve been the best group of guys I’ve ever been a part of,” Mockaitis said. “And we work harder than anyone I think. And we really just never give up and have the greatest amount of trust in each other.”
