Field hockey – Zerfass and Herbine lead way as Emmaus dominates Liberty 9-0 in EPC opener; Hornets await rival Parkland in semifinals

RECAP >> Emmaus began its quest for an eighth straight Eastern Pennsylvania Conference (EPC) championship on Saturday evening at home at Memorial Field as the Hornets rolled to 9-0 win over Liberty.

Seniors Abby Burnett and Rachel Herbine led the way for the top-seeded Hornets (19-0 overall) with each player registering a hat trick and each dishing out a number of assists – Burnett (two) and Herbine (three). Another senior, Ava Zerfass, also scored a pair of goals in the win, while junior Melea Weber added a goal and an assist.

It was the second consecutive season that Emmaus and Liberty have met in the quarterfinal round of the playoffs with the Hornets winning last year 11-0.

With the victory, Emmaus advances to Tuesday’s semifinal at 7 p.m. at BASD Stadium to take on rival Parkland, the No.4 seed, which edged Pocono Mountain East 1-0. The Hornets have already defeated the Trojans once this season, 3-0 back on October 11. The other semifinal at 5 p.m. will feature No. 2 Easton vs No. 3 Nazareth.

Statistically, Emmaus dominated Liberty in both shots on goal (30-4) and penalty corners (17-4). Junior goalkeeper Emma Cari posted her 15th shutout of the season.

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Emmaus 9, Liberty 0

Lib – 0-0-0-0 – 0

Em – 1-4-3-1- 9

Scoring:

Em – Abby Burnett (assist Rachel Herbine)

Em – Burnett (assist Herbine)

Em – Ava Zerfass (assist Burnett)

Em – Burnett (assist Autumn Held)

Em – Herbine (assist Zerfass)

Em – Herbine (assist Melea Weber)

Em – Weber (assist Burnett)

Em – Herbine (assist Held)

Em – Zerfass (assist Herbine)