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Springfield-Delco downs Archbishop Carroll, 14-13, on OT goal by Little in PIAA title game rematch

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Phillylacrosse.com, Posted 4/16/18
Staff Report

What at first felt like a disappointment turned out to be mostly a test run.

Between them, SpringfieldDelco’s Olivia Little and Dana Carlson waited behind the cage for the final 100 or so seconds of regulation in a tied nonleague game with Archbishop Carroll at the Proving Grounds, looking and hoping for the right chance. All they got was a bouncing shot wide of the cage from Belle Mastropietro and a turnover in the teeth of the Carroll defense as the horn sounded.

So when Little got the ball in overtime, she already had most of the options sorted out in her mind.

“A lot of the times, we try to feed from behind, out of the way of the goalie’s stick,” the senior midfielder said. “We try to feed away from the defender or from the opposite side of the stick of the goalie. We try to look at lot opposite-goal. If we don’t see anything, we usually look for three or four passes and then we try to challenge from there.”

When Little challenged, she made it count.

Little’s fifth goal of the game was the decider, a 14-13 victory for Springfield (6-2) over top-ranked Carroll (4-1) in a rematch of last year’s PIAA Class 3A girls lacrosse final.

In terms of intensity and entertainment, Monday’s encore wasn’t too far behind last June’s final – a 9-8 win for Carroll’s first PIAA championship – despite the lessened stakes.

Little took control late with four goals after halftime in addition to two assists. On the final sequence, after Olivia Pace controlled the draw, Little dictated the possession behind the cage. She sent a pass to Carlson, who had rolled through the crease, but Carlson couldn’t control and recycled to Little behind the net. The Saint Joseph’s commit then attacked around the right side of the crease, gained a step on her defender and fired back across the grain to the inside of the right post, beating Carroll goalie Julia Dellaratta with the game-winner.

Those reads, of being active in the crease and drawing free-position shots in the second half, helped Springfield claw back a four-goal deficit. Keeping Carroll’s defense cognizant of the off-ball movement also offered Little her opening.

“We really tried to pressure the crease a lot,” Little said. “Crease is our strong suit, definitely. We have some girls that are really good at crease roll.”

Despite spotting Springfield the game’s first two goals, Carroll led 8-4 with four and a half minutes to play in the first half before Alyssa Long and Carlson tallied in the final minute to reduce the halftime spread to two. Carroll stretched its lead to 11-7 on the first of two Sydney D’Orsogna goals with 15:01 to play. But Springfield wasn’t done, a surge powered in part by its defensive tenacity.

“We definitely could’ve done a better job,” Carroll midfielder Katie Detwiler said. “We had a lot of turnovers that shouldn’t have happened. We had a lot of missed goals that turned into turnovers. We’re just going to have to keep practicing and get it better.”

Little and Mastropietro scored to get Springfield within 12-11 with 3:57 left. Alex Cabahug-Almonte replied within 27 seconds, but Pace and Long restored Springfield to level terms, the latter tallying with 1:52 left to knot the game at 13.

Long, Pace and Carlson scored twice each for the Cougars, while Mastropietro added a goal and two assists. Long and Erin Gormley picked up four draw controls each. But Little added three wins in the second half, shifting an area of strength from Carroll to the Cougars, who won 10 of the last 17 draws despite a 17-12 disadvantage on the game.

Detwiler led Carroll with two goals, three assists and six draw controls. Rachel Matey led the way in DCs with nine to augment a goal and two helpers. Cabahug-Almonte, D’Orsogna, Grace Gallagher, Amber Germer and Madison Henry scored twice each for the Patriots.

Springfield-Delco 14, Archbishop Carroll 13, OT
Springfield 6-7-1- 14
A. Carroll 8-5-0- 13

Archbishop Carroll
Alex Almonte 2g
Amber Germer 2g, 2a
Madison Henry 2g
Grace Gallagher 2g
Sydney D’Orsogna 2g
Katie Detwiler 2g, 2a, 19 of 28 draws
Rachel Matey 1g, 3a
Julia Dellarata 7 saves

Springfield-Delco
Olivia a Little 5 goals and game winner
Dana Carlson 2g
Olivia Pace 2g
Alyssa Long 2g Game tie goal
Belle Mastropietro 1g
Erin Gormley 1g
Julie Schickling 1 g
S Aidan Gallagher 9 saves