Mount Saint Joseph keeps postseason push going, tops Upper Moreland in District 1-2A semifinals
UPPER MORELAND >> There was a consensus amongst the players at Mount Saint Joseph Academy’s pre-practice stretch on Wednesday.
The Magic didn’t have a poor regular season by any means, but as the No. 7 seed in the District I 2A playoff bracket, they knew there weren’t many who had picked them to still be playing, much less a win away from playing for a district title. So, as they got loose for a final practice before Thursday night’s semifinal against No. 3 Upper Moreland the players all reached the same decision.
They’d put enough into getting this far, so they weren’t going to slow down.
Setting the pace on both ends of the field, the Mount led most of the way and controlled the ball as they downed the Golden Bears 14-4 to advance to next week’s district final.
“We were stretching and someone asked ‘alright, so we’re all on the same page, right? We’re going all the way,'” senior goalie and co-captain Annie Shields said. “We’re here now, so we’re doing it all. There’s no ifs, ands or buts about it.”
“We’ve already gotten to this point, so we need to keep going,” sophomore midfielder Katie Westmoreland added.
Upper Moreland’s had a terrific season, the Bears earning a three-way split in the SOL American and qualifying for the state tournament for the first time in a long time. While the Mount won the opening draw, it was UM that grabbed early momentum when Annalise Messina turned a ground ball off a turnover into a transition carry up the field and assist to Jenn Piantieri 35 seconds into the game.
Instead of getting rattled, the Magic got back to work. Gabby Claire, who had five draw control wins, tied the game two minutes later then from behind the goal, Ava Rossi hit the cutting Maggie Rezza for a go-ahead tally and a lead the Mount wouldn’t give back. It wasn’t so much the goals that got to Upper Moreland but more the way Mount Saint Joseph Academy got them.
After their first two goals came 35 seconds apart, the Magic started to use the clock and possession as a weapon by moving the ball and making the Bears chase them before getting into the circle and finishing or drawing a foul. On the other end, Upper Moreland’s possessions didn’t last as long, either being thwarted by a turnover or a denial by the University of Southern California commit in Shields between the posts for the Magic.
Shields made 11 saves, several of them from close range and even turned away a couple eight-meter looks to stymie Upper Moreland.
“They disrupted our hands when we had the ball and it was hard to work the ball quickly,” Messina, who had a goal and two assists, said. “They were able to pressure us really quickly and they were working together as a unit.
“It was rough, we needed to keep our communication up because when we fell with our communication even once, that’s when they were able to take advantage.”
Amelia Claire and Rezza paced Mount Saint Joseph Academy with four goals each – Rezza netting all of her tallies in the first half and adding two assists – but it was Westmoreland who was the team’s catalyst early in the game. The sophomore, who did score two goals and assist on another, was seemingly everywhere in the first half playing offense, defense and in the always crucial middle section of the field.
She channeled her energy into being a disruptive presence, causing three turnovers including two interceptions with the second prompting one of the team’s assistant coaches to yell out “Katie came to play tonight.” The midfielder must have heard it, because she couldn’t contain a laugh when the moment was mentioned postgame.
“I just want to get the ball back and score, that’s the main goal,” Westmoreland said. “Anything I can do to score, that’s what I want to do.
“When you see they’re getting tired, that’s the perfect time to get that opportunity. That’s when we start to really get fired up, because we know we can use that to our advantage.”
The Magic will face Bishop Shanahan, a 9-4 winner over Gwynedd Mercy Academy, in the 2A title game next week. It’s Shanahan’s third straight trip to the final, but the Mount players were eager for the next challenge in front of them.
“The team’s so connected and we’re all in this together,” Westmoreland said. “Even (Wednesday) at practice we were all saying ‘we want to win, we want to win,’ so I think being on the same page and wanting to win together is helping us push through and keep going.”
Upper Moreland will host GMA in the third place game next week, both programs assured a spot in the PIAA bracket. Regan Cummins, who scored her 100th goal last game, had two tallies for UM.
Messina said the biggest takeaway for her team from Thursday will just be to keep playing with heart no matter what’s happening on the field.
The Bears have talent and they’ve won some impressive games this year and the UM midfielder was confident they could get that back before playing in a state playoff game they’ve more than earned.
“Just because the other team gets a goal, it doesn’t mean it’s over for us. We just have to keep our spirits up and rebound back,” Messina said. “It’s been awesome, we’ve all worked so hard in every practice to get here. I think we lost our spirit a little bit this game, but we can get it back by playing with more heart.”
Thursday marked the Mount’s last day of classes, but the lacrosse players certainly don’t mind having to come back to school for at least a few more days to keep practicing. Westmoreland pointed to a late regular season win over Pennridge as the game that kicked this recent run off and Shields added that she’s noticed the team is just generally louder and more talkative since the postseason began.
The senior goalie also pointed to the team’s shared bond, saying that someone on attack is probably best friends with someone on defense so it’s really easy to get fired up when a play gets made on one side of the ball or vice-versa. That’s why the co-captain didn’t hesitate when asked what excites her about helping take this team to a district title game.
“That’s an easy question. Going to an all-girls’ school, we’re just really supportive of each other and have this connection of really helping each other,” Shields said. “Playing a sport at the Mount is so fun because it so easily translates out on the field and now that we’re in the postseason, we’re all sacrificing but we’re so connected and on the same page that we want to do this together.
“That starts with the foundation we’ve built at the Mount.”
MOUNT SAINT JOSEPH ACADEMY 7 7 – 14
UPPER MORELAND 2 2 – 4
Goals-Assists: MSJA – Maggie Rezza 4-2, Amelia Claire 4-0, Katie Westmoreland 2-1, Devin Loome 2-0, Sophie Peters 1-0, Gabby Claire 1-0, Ava Rossi 0-1, Emily Holmes 0-1; UM – Regan Cummins 2-0, Annalise Messina 1-2, Jenn Piantieri 1-1.
Saves: MSJA – Annie Shields 11; UM – Addi Hurley 6
