In their regular-season matchup against archrival Parkland just nine days ago, Emmaus had to rally in the second half to earn a 1-1 draw with the Trojans.
The second meeting in the “Battle of Cedar Crest Boulevard” the Hornets needed no such comeback.
From the opening whistle of last night’s Eastern Pennsylvania Conference semifinal at Northampton High School, head coach Chris Hain’s squad established themselves as the better team.
Seeking their first appearance in the league championship game since the 2022 season, Emmaus dominated the Trojans scoring a goal in each half while posting yet another shutout as they earned a 2-0 win.
“I’m proud of how the girls played tonight,” said Hain, the Hornets third year head coach. “Cecilia (Albeck) opened the scoring and Brooke (Evans) scored our second goal. (Our) forward line was very dynamic in their movement with runs off the ball and well-timed balls played in behind.
“Additionally, Giulana Meyer did not show up on the score sheet, but she was a big part in how we were able to move the ball – I thought her and Lizzie (Bender) worked well in the middle of the field.”
Emmaus, which opened up the playoffs with a dominating 6-0 win over Whitehall on Tuesday, improved to 18-1-1 on the season with the win. They now advance to Saturday’s title game at 10 a.m. at Whitehall opposite a Nazareth squad which handed them their only blemish of the season back on October 7 (1-0). The Blue Eagles, the top seed, advanced with a 3-0 win over Central Catholic in the other semifinal.
It didn’t take long for Emmaus to get the scoring started in their second meeting against the Trojans as Albeck scored her 18th goal of the season in the 9th minute of play off an assist from Evans giving the Hornets the early lead.
The one goal advantage stood up to late in the game when Emmaus added a big insurance goal from Evans in the 76th minute, her 22nd on the year, off an assist from Bender.
Defensively, the Hornets, who have allowed just four goals on the season, were once again outstanding posting their 16th clean sheet of the season.
“Koli Esterly, Cecilia Lower, Ella Daly and Lilly Desiderio were outstanding across the back and gave us the foundation for the shutout,” said Hain. “Sophia Shutkufski, Ella Scharper and Bender were equally strong in the midfield, connecting our back line to our forwards throughout the game. It was a great team effort in a big moment.”
Emmaus had a big advantage in shots out goal outshooting Parkland 13-4. In goal, sophomore Zoe Reppert recorded the shutout stopping all four shots she faced. Her counterpart, Hannah Hertzog, was busy making 11 saves.
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Emmaus 2, Parkland 0
Em – 1-1 – 2
Pa – 0-0 – 0
Scoring:
Em – Cecilia Albeck (assist Brooke Evans)
Em – Evans (assist Lizzie Bender)
Saves – Em (Zoe Reppert 4), Pk (Hannah Hertzog 11)