RECAP >> Needing a win to secure a spot in the upcoming Eastern Pennsylvania Conference Tournament, Emmaus pulled away from a stubborn Easton squad at halftime and picked up a much needed 8-5 win on Wednesday night at Memorial Field.
Losers of five of their last six games, the Hornets used a four-goal fourth quarter, getting scores from four different players as they defeated Easton for the second time this season.
“That Easton team came out fighting, swinging and they knew that they needed this game,” said Emmaus second year head coach Desi Gonzalez. “They put everything into it. Luckily we were able to fight back and come out on top.”
With the victory, Emmaus improves to 12-5 overall and, more importantly, 9-3 in the EPC, locking down a spot in the league tournament which gets underway next Thursday at Northampton High School. The Hornets are likely to be the No.3 seed and face second-seeded Central Catholic for the third time this season.
Emmaus will need to play a whole lot better moving forward after a sloppy first half and leading the upset-minded Red Rovers by just one (3-2) at the break.
“We had seven turnovers in the first quarter and that’s unacceptable,” said Gonzalez. “I don’t know what it was. Whether they came out flat because they beat them the last time. We can’t afford to look ahead in games like this.”
Six different players scored goals in the win led by senior Bailey O’Connor who continued his torrid scoring streak with two goals and an assist. O’Connor, second on the team with 26 goals on the season, has now scored 12 goals in his team’s last four games.
Fellow senior Evan Bhagat also added a pair of goals – Nos. 29 and 30 on the season, junior Michael Leschinsky scored his team-leading 37th goal and added an assist, senior Sam Conway and junior Alex Adamczyk also figured into the scoring, while long stick midfielder Devon Boyko closed out the scoring with his fourth goal.
“We finally started taking care of the ball,” said Gonzalez. ” The first three quarters I don’t think we ran our offense once. They really battled back and finally settled in and started to run the offense and the open looks just came one after another.”
Hornets backup goalie Levin Sarver had a solid game in net and was credited with 12 saves. Sarver was forced into action due to an unfortunate eye injury to starting goalie sophomore Ben Franco.
“I was excited for Levin going into this game,” said Gonzalez. “That’s a kid that comes to practice everyday, works his tail off and knows his role as a second string goalie. He’s a senior and to see him start and finish the game with a win and get some saves was great. Good moments like that definitely make coaching worth it in the end.”
Easton, which was eliminated from the EPC playoffs, dropped to 6-6 in the league and 7-7 overall after dropping their fifth game in the last six. The Red Rovers were led by senior Dalton Metzger who had a hat trick. Sophomore Alex Petrignani and junior Aidan Harrison also had solo scores. In goal, junior Joey Heckel was credited with nine stops
Emmaus will close out its regular-season on Monday at 6:30 p.m. at Memorial Field hosting rival Parkland on Senior Night. The Trojans won the first meeting 9-8 back on April 18.
Easton – 1-1-1-2 – 5
Emmaus – 0-3-1-4 – 8
Easton goals – Dalton Metzger 3, Alex Petrignani, Aidan Harrison
Easton saves – Joey Heckel 9
Emmaus goals – Evan Bhagat 2, Bailey O’Connor 2, Sam Conway, Alex Adamczyk, Michael Leschinsky, Devon Boyko
Emmaus assists – Leschinsky, O’Connor
Emmaus saves – Levin Sarver 12
EPC Standings (Top 4 records qualify for playoffs)
West Div – Parkland 12-0, CCHS 10-2, EMMAUS 9-3, Easton 6-6, Freedom 4-8
East Div – Nazareth 7-4, Northampton 3-7, Pleasant Valley 3-8, Liberty 3-8, Becahi 0-11
PHOTOS: Robert Thompson
