Phillylacrosse.com, Posted 6/8/10
Staff Report
Springfield-Delco outscored Manheim Township, 11-2, in the second half today and claimed a 14-4 triumph in the semifinals of the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association (PIAA) girls’ lacrosse championships at Gov. Mifflin High.
The win vaults the Cougars (23-2) into the PIAA finals against Central League rival Radnor Saturday at HersheyPark Stadium at noon. The Red Raiders, who shared the Central League crown with the Cougars and Strath Haven, advanced by toppling Unionville, 23-14.
Radnor, the defending champion, and Springfield-Delco have met twice already this year. Radnor defeated the Cougars, 8-7, in the regular season and 8-6 in the District 1 championship. The Raiders (No. 1) and Cougars (No. 2) are the top-ranked teams in the PA Media Rankings.
Manheim Township, the District 3 champion, entered play as the state’s lone undefeated team. The Blue Streaks (23-1) trailed only 3-2, at halftime and were down only 7-4 with 12:09 to play until the Cougars tallied the game’s final seven goals.
A major reason Manheim Township stayed alive was the brilliant goaltending of sophomore goalie Shannon Nee, who had 11 saves in the first half and 19 overall. Also, senior Rachael Rosenfeld led the Blue Streaks with two goals in the first half.
Springfield-Delco finally began to solve Nee in the second half as Courtney Kennedy scored twice to spark a 4-0 run to open the second half and give the Cougars a 7-2 lead. Shannon Burns, Nathalie Basunga and Valerie Paolucci each had two goals while Lindsey Mace and Alex Poplawski each had two goals.
“We dominated play,” Springfield-Delco coach Keith Broome said. “The goalie played very, very well. She was a difference-maker. She was good (on) high (shots), and we shot high. We got a little frustrated, I thought; 3-2 at halftime, I thought the kids started pressing a little bit. In the second half they started to do the things we asked them to do.”
Michelle Gildea and Jenn Mahon also scored for Springfield-Delco.
“I think the girls knew today would be a tough game,” said Manheim Township coach Lisa Lyons. “They’re very proud with how they played. Obviously they’d like to see a win, but they put their best game out there. Today their best game didn’t get us a win. I’m definitely proud of the girls.
“I was ecstatic (at the halftime score),” she added. “I thought the girls were playing an awesome game. Shannon Nee really kept us in that first half, and the defense played incredible.”
Springfield-Delco 14, Manheim Township 4
Springfield-Delco 3-11- 14
Manheim Township 2-2 – 4
Springfield-Delco:
Shannon Burns 2g, 1a
Lindsey Mace 2,g
Valerie Paolucci 2g, 1a
Courtney Kennedy 2g
Nathalie Basunga 2g, 1a
Alex Poplawski 2g
Michelle Gildea 1g
Jenn Mahon 1g
Janel Folkomer 3 saves
Manheim Township:
Rachael Rosenfeld 2g
Molly Hendrick 1g, 1a
Megan Pinkerton 1g, 1a
Devon Schneider 1a
Shannon Nee 19 saves
Shots: S-D 34, MT 7.
The Lancaster Intelligencer contributed to this article
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