By Chris Goldberg
Phillylacrosse.com, Posted 3/23/08
It was a near-perfect season for the Springfield-Delco girls’ lacrosse team.
The Cougars went 21-0, breezed to the Central League crown and won a second straight District 1 class AA championship. They finished seventh in the final Lacrosse magazine national poll and were 10th in the Laxpower.com national poll.
That was 2007.
Midfielders Jackie Eastman (Penn State) and Julianna Jeffers (Delaware) and goalie Sarah Geary (Old Dominion) have moved onto major Division I programs. Seven other seniors who made major contributions also have graduated.
Is anybody feeling sorry yet for Springfield coach Keith Broome?
Hardly!
“Last year’s team was unbelievable with players like Julianna, Jackie and Sarah,” said Broome, whose team has won four of the last five Class AA titles. “We were blessed, and we had a lot of great role players. I never had to push them; it was just an outstanding group of girls.”
The Cougars, who open Thursday at Penn Charter, will rely mostly on senior midfielder Aly Adams (committed to Penn State), senior midfielder Samantha Tajarian (Richmond), senior attacker Rebecca Hartrum (Old Dominion), senior goalie Meghan Kearney (Shippensburg) and junior midfielder Madison Poplawski. After that, most of the spots are open.
“I really think we have skilled players in key positions in this year’s group,” Broome said. “That is always a plus. If someone tells you it’s a rebuilding year, you usually think it will be a tough year.
“I really believe the key for us is leadership. We had these great kids and all these leaders for three years. It will be interesting to see who on this team steps up and becomes a leader.”
With its success in the past decade, the Cougars have gained a strong national reputation. That helped Broome build a strong schedule that will further test this year’s team.
“Our schedule is difficult,” he said. “We get calls from Connecticut to Maryland. We’re playing Shawnee from New Jersey, Good Counsel out of D.C., Milton, a two-time state champion from Georgia, and of course our Central league schedule as well as Episcopal at the Katie Samson Festival. The schedule is really challenging.”
Downingtown East coach has good outlook
First-year Downingtown East coach Caitlin Barbakoff is optimistic after taking over a team that went 11-9-1 last year and fell to Boyertown in the first round of the District 1 Class AAA playoffs.
“I am impressed with the speed, sticks skills and just pure athleticism of this team,” she said. “Our challenge is to build the team rapport and chemistry quickly. With many younger players and a new coach, there is always the challenge of establishing a style and rhythm, but I think we are well on our way to a strong season this year.”
Barbakoff listed senior high attacker Mackenzie O’Keefe (committed to West Chester), senior low attacker Kat Sasko, junior midfielders Kelli Joran and Kristen Blye and junior high defender Marielle Ramsay as her players to watch.
PAC-10: Pottstown, Spring-Ford start strong
Pottstown opened Thursday with a 19-3 rout of Coatesville as Kasey Mock had six goals and two assists, Devon Yocom added four goals and three assists and Maure Perrymond contributed three goals and four assists. Under the guidance of coach Andy Bachman, the Trojans should again be a force in the Pioneer Athletic Conference and vie with Boyertown for the crown.
Spring-Ford also got off to a good start with a 13-7 victory Thursday over Springfield-Montco. Allie Kakareka, Lindsay Kupferschmidt and Ashley Wood each scored three goals for the Rams.
Central Bucks West wins over district rival
Cathy Marston scored three goals while Ally Howell and Tori Ueland added two each to help Central Bucks West down Central Bucks South, 10-5, in a season opener. Natalie Rube led the Titans with two goals and Jess Adcock recorded 19 saves.
Episcopal grad falls to alma mater
Taylor Trimble scored four goals March 17 to lead Episcopal to an 18-5 triumph over Germantown Friends and coach Katie Bergstrom, an Episcopal grad. Betsy Sachs scored three goals for the Tigers.
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