Phillylacrosse.com, Posted 4/20/22 – From Staff Report
Penncrest’s lacrosse teams won two games to both remain undefeated, but all were winners Tuesday night when the Lions traveled to Strath Haven in a boy/girl Central League doubleheader to benefit the HEADstrong Foundation.
The Penncrest boys (10-0, 5-0 league) triumphed, 13-6 while the Lions (9-0, 5-0) took the girls game, 11-10 in overtime.
The four teams obtained sponsors, and players shared their fundraising pages on social media, and proceeds from the snack bars were donated to HEADstrong. Already, over $5,000 has been raised for the Foundation.
In the girls’ game, Annalynn Pompetti (3g, 3a, 1 DC, 2gb) scored the game-winner while Kate Stanton (4g, 1a, 3 DC, 3gb, 1 CTO), Kate Kirchgasser (2g, 2gb, 1 CTO), Kaitlyn Roth (1g, 1a, 1 DC, 3gb, 1 CTO) and Sophie Pasnak (13 saves, 4gb) had big games for Penncrest.
“Well to begin with haven is always a gritty rivalry game so it was really awesome that we could come together to support this cause,” said Pompetti. “An event like this is so important for our community to raise awareness and help fundraise for the HEADstrong foundation. We definitely played for something bigger then a win last night.
“We are just playing our game and having fun while doing it,” she added of the undefeated start. “Yes, there’s going to be some tough battles to come, but we are hungry and ready, both physically and mentally.”
In the boys’ game, Dylan MacDougall and Jason Poole each had five goals and an assist to lead the Lions.
“An event like this brings the whole school together and raises the moral of the community,” said Poole.
How does Poole see the second half the year, with major challenges coming from the likes of defending league and state champion Radnor, Garnet Valley, Springfield-Delco and Conestoga?
“When we play the tougher teams we need to try and possess the ball more and limit the turnovers,” he said. “We have all been playing together since elementary school and we just click now. Everything is just falling into place.”
The event Tuesday featured many special recognitions. A local woman battling breast cancer was the beneficiary and her family was introduced at the girls’ game. Penncrest alums Bill O’Donnell, Tom O’Donnell and Evan Pettit were recognized at the boys’ game for organizing the Penncrest/Haven Men’s Alumni HEADstrong Game last November, a new tradition which will be played every Black Friday.
Teams wore lime-green laces and shooter shirts that were sponsored by some local business.
Team fundraising links can be found here with other HEADstrong teams: https://pledge.headstrong.org/event/attack-cancer-2022/e361041/search?type=team
Also, this fall both programs join in with a men’s alumni game that raised over $20K (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=51Lr6lk3OLY) last year. That helped support two local families and support families coming to Swarthmore’s Nicks House for life saving cancer care.
Boys
Penncrest 13, Strath Haven 6
Penncrest 6-3-1-3=13
Strath Haven 1-1-1-3=6
Strath Haven
Austin Conner 1g
Marco Kaufman 1g
Jamison Soerio 1g
Chase Nongle 3g
Brian Chieffo 17 saves
Penncrest
Dylan Mcdougall 5g, 1a
Jason Poole 5g, 1a
Brennan Kaut 1g, 3a
Liam Fickes 1g, 1a
Spencer Tyson 1g
Luke Pyle-Ballak 7 saves
Girls
Penncrest 11, Strath Haven 10, OT
Penncrest 6-4-1- 11
Strath Haven 8-2-0- 10
Strath Haven
L. Conner 5g
K. Nieczpiel 2g
A. Dignazio 1g
J. Steere 1g
G. Kelly 1g
A. Yancey 9 saves
Penncrest
Annalynn Pompetti: 3g, 3a, 1 DC, 2gb, Game Winner
Kate Stanton: 4g, 1a, 3 DC, 3gb, 1 CTO
Kate Kirchgasser: 2g, 2gb, 1 CTO
Kaitlyn Roth: 1g, 1a, 1 DC, 3gb, 1 CTO
Kathryn Harding: 1g, 2 CTO
Reese Bigler: 1gb
Adisyn Bernhardt: 1gb
Taryn Tagtmeir: 2 CTO
Sophie Pasnak: 13 saves, 4gb
