After walking off the field earlier this week at Northampton High School following a lopsided 19-1 loss to Pleasant Valley in the Eastern Pennsylvania Conference championship game, the Emmaus girl’s lacrosse team needed to refocus.
Yes, it was disappointing as the Hornets once again had to settle for another runner-up finish in the league title game — their fifth straight.
But there was still more lacrosse to played and more meaningful games ahead.
And that began last night at home as Emmaus welcomed rival Parkland to Memorial Field in their District XI 3A opener.
The two teams, who played a classic back on May 1 with the Hornets prevailing 10-9 in overtime, were meeting for the second time in a little over two weeks with the winner keeping their season alive.
With just two days to prepare for the game, Emmaus showed little to no effect of a hangover following their EPC championship loss as they used a total team effort to defeat the Trojans 12-8.
“Things went well tonight,” said Hornets head coach Roxann Betz following the game. “It was a much better game overall then our loss from earlier this week and we needed it.
“Everyone stepped up and played really well,” she added. “Our attack played well with Brooke Peterson standing out. Defensively, we were solid in goal and Devin (O’Neill) played great with some key saves, especially some big stops early on.”
Peterson, a senior, led the offensive attack with a game-high four goals, while junior Sarah Gross, who had the game-winner in the first meeting with Parkland, had a hat trick for Emmaus which improved to 13-8 on the season.
Sophomore McKenna Guzick added a pair of goals and an assist in the win and junior Taylor Younker also found the back of net twice. Senior Abby DiComes had a game-high three assists.
Emmaus led 3-2 after one quarter but then pulled away from Parkland in the middle quarters outscoring the Trojans 8-1.
Parkland was led in scoring by junior Milla Hahn who had a hat trick. Freshman Sam Schippell added a pair of goals, while sophomore Lila Temchatin added a goal and an assist for the Trojans who ended their season 9-10 overall.
Emmaus will now prep for a third matchup against Pleasant Valley on Monday at 7 p.m. back at Northampton with a trip to the championship on the line.
“We’ve faced quite a bit of adversity this year, but we have strong senior leadership, and the girls want another chance against them,” said Betz. “I can rely on the seniors to keep the rest of the team focused.”
“Defensively the game plan is going to have to change to some degree. It’s tough because they are so good. They are going to make adjustments and exploit your weaknesses. Offensively, we need more shots on goal, and we need to just stay composed. Our girls are excited for the opportunity at another shot.”
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Emmaus 12, Parkland 8
Pa – 2-0-1-5 – 8
Em – 3-4-4-1 – 12
Park – Milla Hahn 3g, Sam Schippell 2g, Addison Winfield 1g, Jade Caravello 1g, Lila Temchatin 1g/1a, Audrina Stewart 2 saves
Em – Brooke Peterson 4g, Sarah Gross 3g, McKenna Guzick 2g/1a, Taylor Younker 2g, Rylie Poll 1g, Abby DiComes 3a, Kate Newhard 1a, Devin O’Neil 6 saves