By Bradley Schlegel
Phillylacrosse.com, Posted 6/4/16
BIRDSBORO, Pa. – Brett Baskin had four goals and two assists to lead La Salle to a 14-5 win over Wilson in the quarterfinals of the PIAA playoffs Saturday at Daniel Boone.
“Brett has had a great year,” his head coach Bill Leahy said. “He does a lot on the field. He knows how to go to goal, and he is tough to cover.”
Matthew Clibanoff delivered three goals and two assists for the Explorers (20-3), who advance to the semifinals Tuesday against Manheim Township at Exeter at 1 p.m. Manheim routed Mt. Lebanon, 17-5.
Wilson finished 25-1.
“This feels great,” said Baskin, who also had the winning overtime goal in Wednesday’s first-round game vs. Bishop Shanahan. “We’ve worked so hard this season It’s an awesome feeling to take another step towards a state title.”
Clibanoff scored twice in the initial two minutes, including seven seconds into the game, to help La Salle jump to an early 3-0 lead. Baskin added two goals midway through the first quarter to put the Explorers ahead 5-1.
“We came out ready to play,” said Leahy. “We are grinding at the right time of the year. The boys have come ready to work throughout the year. What I care about is how well we’re playing in May and June.”
According to Baskin, the Explorers were able to execute their offense by “moving the ball, sharing the ball, trusting each other and finishing scoring opportunities near the net.”
Adam Close had two goals and an assist, while Jake Klein scored twice for the Bulldogs.
“We lost to a very good team,” said Joe Bialek, Wilson’s acting head coach. “La Salle is deep and talented. They threw a lot of looks at us. They attacked us with 25 guys, a lot of whom did multiple things.”
District 3 runner-up Manheim Township (23-3) rolled into the semis with balanced scoring as Sean Curcio (3g, 1a), Grayson Sallade (3g, 1a), Reagan Ketchum (2g, 4a) and Zach Diamond (3g) led a balanced attack.
La Salle 14, Wilson 5
Wilson West Lawn 2 0 3 0 — 5
La Salle 5 2 4 3 — 14
Wilson
Jake Klein 2g
Adam Close 2g, 1a
Ryan Terefenko 1g
Matt Marella 1a
Jake Stites 1a.
Francisco Cox 7 saves
La Salle
Brett Baskin 4g, 2a
Matthew Clibanoff 3g, 2a
Cody Mazurek 2g
Colin Cahill 1g, 1a
Brendan Meagher 1g
Kohler Setley 2g
Anthony Giuliani 1a
Joseph Taylor 1a
Ethan LaMond 1a
Christopher Hladczuk 1g, 1a
Matthew McLaren 8 saves
Manheim Township 17, Mt. Lebanon 5
Manheim Twp. 4-4-8-1-17
Mt. Lebanon 2-1-1-1-5
Manheim Township
Sean Curcio 3g, 1a
Owen Miller 2g
Dylan Speitel 1g
Reagan Ketchum 2g, 4a
Zach Diamond 3g
Grayson Sallade 3g, 1a
Aaron Kager 1g
Chris Rivera 1g, 2a
Bryce Hutchinson 1g
Caton Johnson 6 saves
Mt. Lebanon
Owen Meyers 1g, 1a
Kenny Giarla 1g
Brian Ward 2g, 1a
Dave Harvey 1g
Jake Sharpe 5 saves
