Phillylacrosse.com, Posted 6/5/18
Staff Report
MECHANICSBURG, Pa. – Christian Mazur didn’t win the majority of his draws Tuesday. The Strath Haven freshman didn’t even take the majority of faceoffs for the Panthers on the day.
But on the draw that mattered most, the draw to start overtime in the PIAA Class 2A semifinal with Mars Area High School, Mazur did more than just win the ball. He won a penalty. And in short order, his Panthers won the game.
Nicky Palermo scored his third goal off an assist from Ethan Belville as Haven won, 12-11, in a twice-delayed affair.
The win sends the District 1 third seed to Saturday’s final at West Chester East (at 2:30 p.m.) against District 1 champion Bishop Shanahan, which disposed of York Catholic 17-5 in the nightcap at Cumberland Valley High School.
Mazur was 4-for-9 at the X, sharing duties with Hunter Clements against a Mars side, led by Andrew Moyer, that won 16 of 26 faceoffs. Moyer’s prowess at the X helped put the Fighting Planets up by as many as three goals in the first half.
But Mazur kept the pressure on, aided by a family connection. Older brother Hunter Mazur, back from his freshman year at Army and nursing a knee injury, was on the sidelines drilling the current Haven faceoff duo. Zane Mazur has shed his faceoff duties for long-stick mid responsibility as one of his younger brother’s wings.
“My brother’s on the sidelines and he’s telling me what to do,” Christian said of Hunter. “He tells me to keep my left hand low and keep going into the ball, keep rotating and you’ll get the ball eventually, and that’s what happened.”
Christian Mazur’s late-season emergence has fueled the Panthers. His goal kickstarted a comeback from a seven-goal deficit in the District 1 Class 2A third-place game, which got Haven to states via an OT win.
“Christian is a freshman but he plays like a senior,” genuine senior Ryan Morris said. “We just tell him to do your thing and our wing guys will give you all the help you need. Just go out there and battle and see what happens.”
Christian Mazur won the last two draws Tuesday, including to open overtime, when he was hauled down by Moyer to elicit a flag. That set up a man-up chance, and with Jeff Conner (five goals, one assist) locked off, Palermo flashed across the crease, took a feed and pumped home the winner.
“They locked Jeff, and we ran a play where Jeff was at the bottom of the goal line, and I was on the crease trying to get open,” Palermo said. “Ethan Belville made a great feed, and I just shot it and scored.”
Mars, the District 7 champion, led by three in the first half, but Strath Haven used a 4-0 run after the first weather stoppage to take a 10-8 lead. The Fighting Planets roared out of the next lightning delay in the fourth quarter, using goals from Mike Doyle and Anthony Grieco, both set up by Cade Hetzler, to tie the game at 11 with 2:46 left.
Doyle scored twice, and Grieco and Hayden Vasbinder each tallied hat tricks. Hetzler had three goals and three assists, including an over-shoulder assist to Doyle for an over-shoulder goal.
“I’m proud of what we did,” Hetzler said. “We fought together. We were down two with four minutes left. We banded together, our captains did a great job, we knew we were never out of it, and the last goal just didn’t fall our way.”
Conner had five goals and a helper to surpass the 400-point mark for his career, but he rang the crossbar with less than 10 seconds left in regulation. Liam Carney scored twice, and Ibo Pio paired a goal with two helpers. Vincey Palermo made eight second-half saves.
Strath Haven 12, Mars 11
Mars 4 3 1 3 0 – 11
Strath Haven 3 2 3 3 1 – 12
Mars
Cade Hetzler 3g, 3a
Anthony Grieco 3 g – game-tying goal with 2:46 left
Hayden Vasbinder 3g
Mike Doyle 2 g
Andrew Moyer a, 11-for-19 faceoffs
Will Scurci 9 saves
Strath Haven
Jeffrey Conner 5g, a (first goal was the 400th point of his career)
Ethan Belville 2a
Nicky Palermo 3g – GWG man-up at 3:17 of OT
Liam Carney 2g
Ibo Pio g, 2 a
Chris Rosini g
Will Brake 5 saves
Vincey Palermo 9 saves
