EXETER TOWNSHIP >> With her Conestoga lacrosse career hanging in the balance, not to mention the careers of 15 other senior teammates, Ellie Wisch delivered the biggest goal of her life — twice.
After enduring a Conestoga scoring drought that dragged on for nearly three quarters, Wisch scored the game-tying goal with 1:42 left in regulation and followed it up by burying the game-winner in double overtime off a heads-up feed from Abbie Preston to topple Manheim Township 5-4 in the PIAA 3A semifinals on Tuesday night at Exeter Township High School. Wisch was responsible for four of the five Conestoga goals.
The Pioneers also survived a critical Wisch turnover in the first overtime in addition to a Conestoga penalty that forced the team to compete down a player for two minutes in the extra session. Yet somehow, someway, Wisch and company found a way, as her goal with 1:53 left in the second overtime sent Conestoga to Saturday afternoon’s state title game (2:30 p.m. at Penn State, where Wisch is committed to play in college) against familiar District 1 foe Radnor.
“Oh my gosh, insane pass from Abbie Preston,” Wisch said. “I had an unfortunate turnover and I owed it to this team. I needed to put the ball in the back of the net. I saw Abbie inside, so I went full speed backdoor. I don’t even remember how I shot it. It was pure adrenaline.
“So much credit goes to our defense. They won the game, not me. Playing a man down for two minutes is insane, but they were just locked in and their communication was crazy. They really fought, and all I can say is we just wanted it.”
Conestoga had scored 35 goals in its two preceding state wins, and Manheim Township was not far behind with 34 of its own. By the way the first quarter unfolded, it seemed like another high-scoring affair could be in the cards, with Olivia Young opening the scoring for Manheim under three minutes into the game followed by three quick Conestoga scores in the span of 2:42 (one by Kiki Liebezeit and two by Wisch).
Then, the offense suddenly went silent for both teams, but more so for the Pioneers (20-4), who wouldn’t score again until Wisch’s game-tying score late in the fourth quarter. Manheim got a goal just before halftime from Liv Parmer to slice Conestoga’s lead in half, then Young tied the game at 3 with her second of the game with 2:24 left in the third period.
“Both teams came out firing, then for some reason we just started playing frantic and nervous,” Wisch said of the offensive deficiencies. “For us, when something negative happens we tend to go downhill and we just couldn’t get the momentum going. That was one of our worst games we played all season, so we just have to forget about it.”
Regan Taylor gave Manheim (21-4) its first lead since the first quarter when she scored with 8:18 to play in regulation to put her team up 4-3. The teams traded possessions for the next five or six minutes until Conestoga finally broke through just in the nick of time. Wisch fired a shot at an odd angle that fortuitously dribbled past Manheim goalie Leah Cramer.
“She’s the type of kid who wants the ball on her stick when it counts,” Conestoga head coach Amy Orcutt said. “You need a kid like that. She put the team on her shoulders and scored four of our five goals. You can’t ask for anything more than that.”
The Pioneers won the draw in the first overtime, but a momentary lapse of focus by Wisch when trying to set the Conestoga offense up became a turnover forced by Parmer, which was then followed by a Conestoga penalty. A breathless two minutes ensued, but goalie Alex Lepore came up with a huge save and the defense forced a turnover shortly thereafter.
All that was left for Wisch to do was finish the job, and she impressed everybody in attendance with a perfectly-timed, off-ball backdoor cut that left her wide open with a head of steam charging right toward Cramer’s crease.
“The winning goal was so heads up and so Ellie,” Orcutt said. “She reads defenses so well and makes adjustments. Even when we set something up to run, she’s so good that she does what nobody is expecting because it’s off the ball. The defense was pressuring her, so she backdoored and Abbie made a great leading pass. It wasn’t the play we drew up, but she figured out a way to get it done. That’s just the type of player she is.”
Now, all that stands between Conestoga and its second state title in three years is an opponent the Pioneers know well. Radnor went 2-0 against Conestoga this season, winning 7-6 in the regular-season finale on May 7 and also claiming a 9-7 victory in the District 1 3A title game on May 29.
Needless to say, Wisch and the rest of the Pioneers have not forgotten those two results. Just like Tuesday night, Conestoga didn’t play its best brand of lacrosse against Radnor, but now the Pioneers know how to win even when they’re playing below their normal lofty expectations.
“They’ve beaten us twice, and it’s very hard to beat a team three times,” Wisch said. “We know what we need to do. We’re going to have three really good, focused practices and then come out with fire. We’re going to get the gold, I promise you. If we play four full quarters, we can win. We know so much about each other, so many friends on the two teams, but we’re going to come out with the win.”
After the rollercoaster of emotions Wisch experienced on Tuesday, it’s easy to understand her confidence. But there’s more at play for Wisch and the other 15 seniors, who have a chance to do what no other Conestoga girls’ lacrosse team has ever done: win multiple state titles.
“We’ve made such an impact on Conestoga lacrosse, with at least half of us moving on to play Division I,” Wisch said. “We want to play for all the seniors and come out with a win. Winning two championships in our four years would be crazy. We have the talent, now we just have to put it to use.”
