Archbishop Wood returns to PCL title game with win over Lansdale Catholic

ASTON >> As the clock hit zeros in Thursday’s Philadelphia Catholic League girls lacrosse semifinal between Lansdale Catholic and Archbishop Wood, judging by the reaction of both teams it was hard to tell which side won the game. Both teams joyously ran down to their respective goalies and huddled with their teammates.

Wood was celebrating a 19-9 win advancing to the PCL championship game for the third consecutive year. LC embraced as a team that put up a valiant effort against a strong Vikings team.

“We played them last year and it was definitely not that close of a game,” LC coach Alexis Setley said. “At halftime to be that close in score just makes us so much more hopeful for next season.”

For the first half of the game the Crusaders kept pace with Wood. Keeping LC in the game was junior midfielder Jacqui Jester. The Rutgers commit scored four first half goals, five in total, and played a big role in keeping the draw control close as well, as Wood held a slight 9-8 advantage in draw control at the half.

“I thought she had a really great game today,” said Setley of Jester. “I think she’s a huge asset to our team but we’re working on forming up some of our sophomores and freshmen. Jac’s not going to be with us forever.”

In the second half,the deeper Wood team imposed itself on the Crusaders, as the Vikings tipped the at once fairly-balanced possession heavily in their favor. Throughout the game, Wood had some unfortunate shots clanging off posts or other shots that went awry.

Juniors Emma Craparo and Bridget Neiley were not exempt from some of the offensive misfortune, but they had plenty of scoring opportunities as well. Neiley and Craparo combined for 15 of the Vikings’ 19 goals, scoring eight and seven goals, respectively.

“Those two were awesome,” Wood coach Dipi Bhaya said. “This is probably Emma Craparo’s best game as far as offensive output.”

Up next for Wood, a team that has been nothing short of pure kryptonite for the Vikings as Archbishop Carroll comes in with nine game Catholic League championship game winning streak over Wood.

“This is going to be a black and white game as far as the next game,” Bhaya said. “It’s like a whole different league. The tempo, the speed and the strategy is going to be completely different. We’re excited to move on to the next round but we’re going to have a lot things we’re going to be working on.”