District 1 Class 3A Boys Lacrosse: Busenkell helps Garnet earn another shot at Kennett
CONCORD — Max Busenkell can make the game of lacrosse seem so effortless.
Even when he improvises, it seems as though the Garnet Valley senior possesses the skill of a seasoned craftsman, with complete confidence in his talent.
Take, for instance, what Busnekell managed to do early in the third quarter of Garnet Valley’s eventual 20-7 bludgeoning of Downingtown West Saturday. The Jaguars were on the move after intercepting a pass and they had numbers. Busenkell set up shop in front of goalie Zach Rossman, who was helpless. Colin Smith fed a wide-open Busenkell, who promptly flicked the ball behind his shoulder – no-look style – into the back of the net.
Filthy stuff, really.
It was that type of day for the Jags. With the win, No. 4 Garnet Valley (16-4) clinched a spot in the PIAA Class 3A tournament and a berth in the District 1 semifinals Tuesday night. GV will play top-seeded and undefeated Kennett (19-0), which handed the Jags a 15-7 loss May 13. Kennett advanced by defeating Conestoga.
Busenkell registered a game-high seven points on three goals and four assists.
“As the season goes on, definitely our chemistry is getting a lot better,” he said. “We’re getting better and better as we continue to learn how each one of us plays out there. And we’re feeling really good about how we’re playing right now.”
In two district playoff games, the Jags have completely dominated. With a plus-27 scoring margin, GV’s offense is in the zone. Busnekell has nine goals through the first two rounds.
“I thought we ended the regular season pretty poorly and we needed to regroup for the playoffs,” Busenkell said. “The loss to Kennett, I know no one was happy about that at all. So I think that’s a big driving factor.”
Before he knew the Jaguars’ next opponent, Busenkell added, “We’d love another shot at (Kennett) because a lot of people know that we didn’t play up to our potential against them the last time we played.”
With temps pushing 90, the Jags came out sizzling against fifth-seeded Downingtown West (16-4). Midfielder Bishop Barnes unleashed a pair of low-angled lasers past the goalie in the opening minutes of the first quarter. Barnes drove and scored uncontested to put GV ahead 1-0.
After Tyler Rodriguez got the equalizer for the Whippets 2:30 into the period, Barnes struck again to give GV a 2-1 lead, one they’d never relinquish. Barnes ended with a game-high four goals as well as two helpers.
“We had a great week of practice and we had a great game plan put in for us. We just had that intensity from the start today and we just came after it,” Barnes said. “We are out there always helping each other, just getting each other hyped up after each other’s goals. It doesn’t matter who scores, we’re just all happy to be out there trying to do whatever we can to win.”
GV ran the Whippets off the field in the fourth quarter, accounting for seven unanswered goals. D-West showed some fight earlier in the second half when it netted a pair of goals with a two-man advantage. Bret Bergey tallied a team-high three goals in the loss for the Whippets, who will try to secure a spot in the state tournament in playbacks.
For Garnet Valley, long-stick midfielder Sean Gallagher was excellent. Sean Reynolds and defenders Bear Evans, Luke Shoemaker and Sam Morin paced a stellar defensive unit. Drew Keaveney got the starting nod in the cage, finishing with five saves. Sam DiTrolio won 13 face-offs for the Jags.
We’ve been working on transition and just pushing the ball. That’s our offense, we’re fast-paced,” Barnes said. “We’re just trying to keep attacking on other teams. I mean, we just put up 20 goals, but we want to be even better.”
