Upper Dublin rolls pst Abington in District 1-3A first round

UPPER DUBLIN >> For a quarter, the Upper Dublin boys lacrosse team’s District 1-3A first-round matchup against Abington seemed poised to be another tight contest between the Suburban One League American Conference rivals.

The Cardinals edged the Galloping Ghost 6-5 on April 11 and through 12 minutes Tuesday afternoon the sides were even at a goal apiece.

But 12th-seeded UD did all the scoring in the second quarter, finding the back of the net five times then continued the offensive momentum after halftime, collecting the first four goals of the third as it rolled past No. 21 Abington for a 12-3 victory.

“We played Abington earlier in the year and that was a close game,” Upper Dublin senior Will Bailey said. “And we prepared for it definitely and we knew what we needed to do and it really just started from the top down with us getting together and preaching everything we’ve been preaching all year like singles and playing for each other.”

Bailey and Ben Guagliardo each scored three goals – both finding the back of the next twice in the third quarter – while Cameron Osborne added a two first-half goals for the Cardinals (13-5), who advance to face No. 5 seed Downingtown East in the second round 4 p.m. Thursday. Upper Dublin fell to East 6-5 in overtime April 29.

“We’ve definitely pumped, we’re excited,” said Bailey of a rematch for a spot in the quarterfinals. “Last time I think it was a big statement going into overtime with Downingtown East and we got a few different looks that we’ve prepared for ‘em and we’re going to give ‘em and we’re definitely going to give them hell.”

Matt Miller had two goals to pace Abington (12-7), which was making its first appearance in the district playoffs since 2015.

After Upper Dublin took a 6-1 lead into the break, the Cardinals’ Chris Kohlbrenner collected the opening goal of the third at 9:42. Bailey struck at 8:34 then added another 5:10 while Guagliardo’s tally 50 seconds later extended UD’s advantage to 10-1.

“Teams like Abington, they thrive in chaotic situations, a lot of transition back and forth,” Bailey said. “So we really wanted to focus on getting into our set and playing our kind of offense and just playing really smart offense.”

A Miller goal at 3:12 had the Ghosts down 10-2 but Guagliardo capped his hat trick at 1:42 while Matthew Shohen made it 12-2 Cardinals as he rifled in a shot with just 2.6 seconds left in the third.

“Everybody started loosening up and having fun,” Bailey said. “It really just came from wanting to stay together and keep playing together. This could be my last home game – it could be a lot of our seniors’ last home game. It really just came from love of each other and just wanting to keep the season going.”