By Chris Goldberg
Phillylacrosse.com, Posted 4/30/11
Matt Rambo had six goals and an assist and Kevin Forster collected a remarkable five goals, seven assists and eight groundballs to lift La Salle to a 16-8 triumph over Abington in the 11th annual Katie Samson Lacrosse Festival at Radnor High.
The victory raised La Salle’s mark to 8-4 while the Ghosts (10-3) saw their 10-game win streak snapped.
Much of the pre-game focus on the game was the fact that Rambo – considered one of the top sophomores in the country – was making his first appearance for the Explorers against his old teammates. Rambo, a key for Abington in its trip to the state playoff last year that ended in a tight loss to La Salle, transferred to the Catholic League powerhouse before the season began.
But Rambo said playing against his former teammates was not difficult, and more enjoyable than anything else. He continues to be friendly with the Ghost players and still spends much time with many of the players off the field.
“I enjoyed it a lot,” he said. “I hang out with them every day of the week, even on weekdays. I hang out with Brian Gallagher, No. 30, all the time.”
Rambo said he transferred for academic reasons when he made the move. He said his former teammates backed his move.
“They know I left for a good reason. On the field, I was talking trash.
“It was a little emotional, but I think that ends the drama. We (he and his old teammates) have been fine for a while.”
La Salle, after an 0-3 start, appears to be peaking at the right time. The Explorers are in first place in the Catholic League and have a key showdown with Conestoga – the team they lost to in the state finals last year and defeated in the title gme the year before – on Saturday.
“We’re heading at a peak,” said Rambo, who added seven groundballs. “I thought our offense played great today; we just had way too many penalties. I’d rather peak at the end of the year than at the beginning.”
Adam Stefanowicz added three goals and two assists for La Salle. Sean Coleman and Zack Jones each scored once. Cory Shaffer (eight) and John Lawlor (three) combined for 11 saves and
For Abington, Ryan Ambler and Matt Figueroa each had two goals and two assists while Dan Lomady scored twice and Travis O’Connor made 13 saves. Anthony Greco led the defense with seven groundballs.
