PIAA Class 3A Girls Lacrosse: When Penncrest needed her, Reese came up Big(ler)
MECHANICSBURG — Saturday’s first half wasn’t the cleanest of the season for Penncrest’s girls lacrosse team, the Lions would agree at the break. But in the chaos wrought by all the turnovers and hectic back-and-forth, Reese Bigler seems to thrive.
The sophomore can impact the game just about anywhere on the field. As she showed Saturday, that can often come in multiple phases of the game one after another.
Penncrest scored three goals in its PIAA Class 3A quarterfinal with Pine-Richland that started directly from Bigler caused turnovers, and Bigler’s athleticism was emblematic of Penncrest’s general open-field advantage in running past the Rams, 21-12, and into the state semifinals.
Bigler wasn’t alone in turning turnovers into goals at John H. Frederick Field at Memorial Park Stadium. But in a game with too many giveaways for either coach’s liking, Bigler supplied consistency, and not just as the streak dashing past Pine-Richland defenders like they were standing still.
“It starts with me and my teammates carrying it through,” Bigler said. “I rely on my teammates so I know if I do that, they’ll finish it off and they’ll complete the play.”
Penncrest (20-4) gradually inflicted its superiority. Twice in the first half, Bigler turned groundballs into transition chances that ended with Adisyn Bernhardt goals. She did so again midway through the second half, Pine-Richland winning a draw before Bigler made them cough it up. Seconds later, Kathryn Harding rifled an eight-meter shot into the net.
“It’s huge because it kind of boosts up our team,” Penncrest’s Cara Childs said. “When we finish a goal off of that, it kind of sets a pace where we win the draw and we do it again.”
Bigler wasn’t alone in that. Mira Kuttymartin had one second-half sequence where she jumped a passing lane like a cornerback getting underneath a stop-route, which led to a Kaitlyn Roth goal. That proved necessary, with the Rams (19-4) not going quietly.
The District 7 champ trailed 2-0 out of the gates but tied the game within three minutes. Bernhardt made it 10-4 with 8:08 left to half, but Hannah Young scored three straight goals to halve the deficit.
Bernhardt would restore an 11-7 margin at the break. Penncrest scored the first four goals of the second half, three from Childs, to relieve any upset drama. However, Pine-Richland stalemated the draws at 17 apiece, led by eight for Madeline Mill, despite Harding’s early edge.
Young, a senior bound for Mercyhurst, scored seven times and added an assist. Catherine Gentile (three goals, three assists) and Caroline Gentile (goal, assist, five DCs) chipped in, and Claire Dosch frustrated Penncrest shooters with six saves.
“I think we could’ve done a better job on our riding down the field,” Young said. “They’re a super athletic team, I’ve got to give it to them. They can run the ball down the field individually. I think our way to combat that is using our great transitions and passing the ball to each other.”
Bernhardt led Penncrest with five goals, including the 100th of her career in the second half. She scored four times in the first. Childs and Harding scored four goals and an assist each. The speedy Roth added three goals, two assists and four DCs. Kate Stanton had three goals (plus three post strikes) and a helper, plus a team-best seven DCs. Bigler added a goal and two assists.
It all helped the Lions’ season keep running, adding state semifinalist to their CV.
“It’s still feels a little surreal,” Bigler said. “I’m so proud of our team and how far we’ve made it and how far we’ve come together.”
