In district final rematch, Bishop Shanahan tops Strath Haven again
WEST GOSHEN >> The matchup for the District 1 2A Girls’ Lacrosse Championship Game wasn’t a surprise, and the outcome didn’t raise many, if any, eyebrows.
But after top-seeded Bishop Shanahan convincingly topped No. 2 Strath Haven 13-4 on Thursday at West Chester East’s Zimmerman Stadium, the Eagles certainly didn’t treat the program’s second straight district crown with any indifference.
“Being a senior and a captain, this is something I’ll remember forever,” said midfielder Sophia Lymberis.
“Being back-to-back champions is huge, especially in this district with all of the great competition,” added senior defender Paris Masaracchia. “It never gets old – this feeling is incredible.”
In a rematch of the 2021 district final, Shanahan (18-4 overall) raced out to an early lead, and then scored the first five goals of the second half to close it out impressively. The Eagles now advance to the PIAA Tournament and will host a first round match on Tuesday.
“We were kind of hunted all season, even in our own league, and it really paid off for us today,” said Shanahan head coach Kacy Small. “And our experience from being here last year really helped us.
“For the first time ever in a big game, I didn’t think we were nervous. The moment wasn’t too big.”
The setback halted a seven-game winning streak for the Panthers (14-7), but they too will have a home game in round one of states.
“(Shanahan) is an awesome team,” said Strath Haven head coach Pigeon Graham. “We knew from the first day of the season that we were going to end up here against them.
“We are on to states, and there aren’t a lot of teams still playing now. We are 21 games into our season, which is unheard of. And we still have a lot of lacrosse to play.”
With wins in 10 of their last 11, the Eagles never trailed on Thursday. And Shanahan’s suffocating defense never allowed the Panthers to gather much momentum because the scoring opportunities were fleeting. In fact, Strath Haven managed just one conventional goal in the contest, with two more coming on free positions and another on a scramble in front of the cage after a save.
“That’s how it’s been all season,” Lymberis said. “We are running a new defense this year with a backer – which means we always have a defender on-ball and another behind the cage so we can double.”
Lymberis played a big role in the quick start, scoring twice in the early going. And when senior Ellie Udo scored, it was 3-0 just five minutes, 16 seconds in. Udo and Lymberis each added another goal in the first half. And other than a fast-break tally by Alaina Baptista (on a pass from Annabelle Weidel), all of Shanahan’s early goals were on individual moves on the interior.
“All year we’ve done well on one-v-ones,” Lymberis pointed out. “We have really good attackers that can take the ball to the goal, and we also have players constantly cutting to the middle.”
The Panthers notched free position goals by juniors Laura Connor and Kaitlin Neiczpiel midway through the half, and then Neiczpiel cut the deficit to 6-3 with a conventional goal in the final two minutes.
Junior Samantha D’Addezio opened the second half with two quick goals as the Eagles proceeded to outscore Strath Haven 7-1 the rest of the way. Junior Silvia Baptista registered two goals in the late flurry, and Udo chipped in with another goal and two assists.
Shanahan was just 1 of 6 on free positions, but the squad got a boost from freshman Stella Dambro, who played a big role in the Eagles’ winning the faceoff battle 11-8. She also added a goal.
“We usually do well in face offs, but there a lot of 50-50 balls we did not get to,” Graham said.
In the second half Shanahan peppered Panthers’ goalie Ava Yancey with 21 shots on goal. She turned aside 14 for a total of 16 saves, but it wasn’t enough because Strath Haven had trouble mounting much on offense.
“Even when we did build some momentum, there was a missed pass here or a hit post there,” Graham said.
“Our defense has been lights out this season,” Small added. “That’s what we needed. We knew if our defense came to play that we would get good results.
“Last year at districts we did the same thing with some really good starts, and then maintain and manage from there. It was very reminiscent of last year.”
After successfully defending its district crown, the Eagles are poised to make some noise in the upcoming state tournament. A year ago, Shanahan fell to Twin Valley in round two.
“Last year we were chasing history,” Small explained. “Our school had never won a league championship or a district championship, and we got both of those. As soon as that was over, the girls bought into the idea of making it a habit. We did not want to be a one-year wonder with a special senior class.
“Now we are kind of playing with house money. But states is a whole different monster.”
Bishop Shanahan 13, Strath Haven 4
Strath Haven 3 1 — 4
Bishop Shanahan 6 7 — 13
Strath Haven goals: Neiczpiel 2, Connor, Steere.
Bishop Shanahan goals: Udo 3, S. Baptista 2, D’Addezio 2, Lymberis 3, A. Baptista, Hubiak, Dambro.
Goalie saves: Yancey (SH) 16; Hathaway (BS) 8.
