Owen J. Roberts keeps the upper hand on Perkiomen Valley, 10-8
BUCKTOWN >> Girls lacrosse championships aren’t won or lost in March.
But for the two most accomplished teams last year in the Pioneer Athletic Conference, there’s no complaining about a quality early-season faceoff.
Even if the result stings.
Perkiomen Valley couldn’t help but feel the burn after Owen J. Roberts managed to keep its edge in the game – and the budding rivalry – in a 10-8 win on Wildcat North Field Friday afternoon.
Having the upper hand on its PAC opposition isn’t new for the Wildcats, which are four-time defending PAC champions and coming off a trip to the PIAA 3A tournament a year ago. They are returning much of their core, including returning Mercury All-Area first team selections Eloise Gebert and Hannah Delahaye and midfield standout Sophia Murray.
Those three were at the center of the Wildcats’ success Friday as Delahaye scored four (one assist) and Gebert three goals (one assist) while Murray, a Delaware commit, was a force on the draw control (6) and scored the game’s pivotal goal off the draw with 5:45 to play after the Vikings got within 9-8 on a Riley McGettigan free position goal.
“It was nice, our first PAC game and because they were ranked above us (by phillylacrosse.com), it felt good to win,” Gebert said. “We lost a lot of girls from last year but we want to show that we’re the same team as last year. Even though we lost as many seniors as we did, we didn’t lose depth.”
For Perkiomen Valley, knowing it was as close as one goal against ‘the monkey on our back’ in the late stages is what will make Friday’s outcome more significant than any old March game.
“Owen J’s kind of been the monkey on our back in the six years I’ve been here from being an assistant coach and now the head coach,” said PV coach Lisa Clark. “(It’s hard to take) knowing that (the Vikings) have the ability … we didn’t execute, and that’s as a coaching staff as well. I’m highly competitive, I care about them and know how much this loss is going to sting for them and for me.”
In part though, the disappointment stems from the raised expectations around PV after last year’s Vikings went on a late-season run to finish fourth in District 1 and qualify for the PIAA 3A tournament for the first time.
Paige Tyson led PV with four goals while Kat Kelley and McGettigan chipped in with two each. Tori Bruno recorded two assists.
“Last year we went into everything as though we had nothing to lose, ‘no one is considering you, no one thinks you can do anything. You lost a huge class and low expectations,’” Clark said. “Now we have a team that, if we’re going to go really far, this is the definitely the team in my six years that you’re going to do it with.
“There are different expectations from last year. We got the taste in our mouth of states last year and we want to be right back, making the (PAC) semifinals and finals, back in districts. That’s higher expectations and now we have a lot of leadership to take care of it, too.”
Delahaye, who ended the game on 99 career goals, and Gebert got the Wildcats going early, out to a 5-2 lead.
Gebert has been a mainstay on the draw and midfield for OJR in recent years. Her next stop is the U.S. Naval Academy, where she accepted an appointment in late December.
“I can’t wait. I’ve had so many people in my life in the military, my cousin’s in the Navy, my dad was in the Coast Guard; it’s something I’ve wanted to do,” Gebert said. “I started getting recruited my freshman year, and I feel in love with the school when I went. No other school really compared.”
She is hoping to study Oceanography and then to become a pilot during her service time.
PV didn’t allow OJR to take full flight Friday though – the Vikings closed within 5-4 at halftime. The Wildcats surged to an 8-4 lead out of the half after Maggie Kilgallon’s goal.
The Vikings again rallied from 9-6 down on goals from Kelly and McGettigan before Murray’s key goal and Owen J. capably holding long possessions over the final minutes to finish off the win.
“We’re trying to do the same as we did last year, but go even farther,” Gebert said. “We want to win PACs again, go farther in districts and hopefully get past first round of states.”
The OJR results stay the same under a new coaching staff. David Schlesinger enters his first year at OJR, the third coach in four years for the program. Schlesinger is a club coach at NXT Sports and formerly coached at Eastern Regional (N.J.), Wissahickon and Central Bucks East.
“We’re tough,” Schlesinger said of his new squad. “We’re very young on the defensive end and we’re learning a lot each time we play. We’re trying some different combinations and are finding our best, most consistent lineup as well. But I thought we held firm in the second half.”
