Loading your audio article
UWCHLAN >> Quick starting Garnet Valley was shutout in the first half against Downingtown East. And the host Cougars, who have been dynamite all season in close games, had trouble holding a late lead. The District 1 3A Boys’ Lacrosse Semifinal on Thursday was certainly an afternoon of contradictions.
But in the end, the Jaguars scored the final five goals of the contest to overcome a two-goal fourth quarter deficit and slip past second-seeded East, 7-5, and advance to the district title game on May 29th. For third-seeded Garnet Valley (18-3 overall), it marked the squad’s seventh victory in the row.
“That was a really good game for us in that we came from behind,” said Jags’ head coach Frank Urso. “We haven’t been behind in a while. And in the playoffs, you are going to be behind and you have to be able to come back and not give up.
“I was proud of the team the way they came back.”
Senior Andrew Goldt notched the game-winner with 3:23 remaining to give Garnet Valley its first lead of the contest. The Jaguars will play the other semifinal winner, either top-seeded Springfield (Delco) or No. 4 Radnor at a site and time to be determined. It will be an all-Central League final.
“It will be good to have a chance to get our revenge on either of those teams – we lost to both of them in the regular season,” Goldt pointed out. “I think we are a different team now, and it’s showing in the playoffs.”
Urso added: “(Springfield and Radnor) are both so stinking good. We are a better team, but so are they. I do know this: coming into this season, nobody thought we’d get to this point. We’ve had an amazing season already.”
Downingtown East falls to 19-2 overall, and both setbacks have come against Garnet Valley. In the regular season finale, the Jags won 13-7 at home.
“I am really proud of the overall effort,” said Cougars’ head coach Joe Horvath. “Despite some of our deficiencies, we played a great game against a really good opponent. (Garnet Valley) really took it to us the first time around, but today we were staring at a victory. Unfortunately it was snatched away. We just have to take some of this momentum moving forward.”
East will play the Springfield-Radnor loser on May 29th in the battle to determine the third-place finisher in the district for the upcoming PIAA Tournament.
“(East) forced us to play their style,” Urso said. “It was the pace that they wanted for an awful long time.”
Trailing 5-2 in the final minute of the third period, Jaguars Ethan Potochar started the comeback off a pass from teammate Luke O’Donoghue. And when Garnet Valley’s Luke Mingioni scooped in a loose ball in front of the cage, it was 5-4 with 8:17 on the clock.
“We knew we were capable of doing it,” Urso said. “We said, going into the fourth quarter: ‘do you want to go to a championship game? If so, you have to show it now.’”
A few minutes later sophomore Parker Williams scored a man-up goal to knot the score for the first time, setting the stage for Goldt’s game-winner, which came off a pass from Mingioni.
“We were moving the ball a lot, a defender slid over and I shot it right around him,” Goldt recalled. “High bouncers were going in so that’s what I did.”
The Cougars won the ensuing faceoff but Jags’ senior goalkeeper Drew Keaveney made a big save with 2:38 to go. Garnet Valley then maintained possession until Goldt scored on an open net with less than 10 seconds on the clock.
“We’ve been in scenarios like this a few times this season – close games that we didn’t expect to be close,” Goldt said. “I mean, we beat (East) by six the first time.
“We are just a resilient team.”
Goldt finished with a game-high four goals and the Jaguars had a 22-13 edge in shots on goal. And senior faceoff specialist Kai Lopez won 13 of 15 from the X.
“We held (East) to three goals in the first half,” Urso said. “Normally we are up by five of six if we hold somebody like that. At the half, we weren’t worried about being too far behind, it was how do we get our offense back on track?”
Senior Connor Sweeney paced East with a goal and two assists, and Taner Marusa had a goal and an assist.
“We had some sloppy turnovers and forced some things, but the difference in the game was not being able to win faceoffs,” Horvath said. “It’s a burden.
“And then the penalties hurt us. When we are playing a lot on defense, we don’t need to be in man-down situations. Our team just hasn’t grasped not pushing from behind and not cross checking and not swinging sticks. If we don’t get a hold of that, we will continue to pay.”
The Cougars got off to an unusually fast start by scoring three times in the opening six minutes, and took a 3-0 lead into the break.
“Our defense, and our goalie (Drew) Keaveney, kept us in it,” Urso said.
“It was a punch in the mouth, for sure,” Goldt added. “But it’s just like boxing, you have to keep fighting.
“To hold a team to three in the first half is great for any defense. But for us to score zero is just unacceptable.”
Goldt made amends by notching his first two goals early in the second half, but East came right back with a man-down tally by Luke Fiorillo and a goal by fellow senior Paxson Warnock with 2:08 remaining in the third. But it was to be the Cougars’ last score.
“Our defense played a lot in the second half, which we all know is wearing,” Horvath said.
Garnet Valley 7, Downingtown East 5
Garnet Valley 0 0 3 4 — 7
Downingtown East 3 0 2 0 — 5
Garnet Valley goals: Goldt 4, Williams, Mingioni, Potochar.
Downingtown East goals: Sweeney, Marusa, Aikens, Warnock, Fiorillo.
Goalie saves: Keaveney (GV) 8; Quinn (DE) 15.
