Phillylacrosse.com, Posted 5/6/23 – Staff Report
For several weeks, Academy of the New Church has been ranked among the top six teams in the nation. The Lions will have played in two major tournaments and a game at Penn State in 2023.
But the Friends Schools League – with just three teams – remains a top priority for ANC.
On Friday the Lions (13-3) claimed their ninth straight Friends championship with a dominant 14-5 victory over rival Westtown School (10-5).
“Yes, this year is very special and we know we have a great group here,” said ANC senior Nate Bradley, a short stick middie headed to Drexel. “The main goal was always the league championship, though. The league is always a rivalry, especially against Westtown.
“Against rivals, it’s always a hard game and always a dogfight. We love that and know the league championship is a very special part of this school and the tradition of winning it is important because we have nine straight now and we want to keep that going.
“We got a lot of recognition this year, but we knew the league was the first and main goal and we wanted to win that first and then worry about other goals after that.”
The Lions started strong and were never threatened. Hunter Aquino led with four goals and an assist and Slater Delacruz had three goals while Matteo Rottura added two goals and two assists. Lucas Flynn had a two goals and an assist and Shane Bradley dished three assists while Owen Carr and Anthony Chiango each had a goal and an assist and Terry Farrell scored once. Meanwhile, Trent Layton was strong at the faceoff X.
“Everything started with the face off today,” Nate Bradley (1 assist) said. “Trent dominated and we basically played make it take it all game. Our defense limited any looks they had and our main focus was to make it hard to do anything.
“We wanted to be relentless and make everything difficult. We had a new goalie today – (sophomore) Braden Corwell – and he stepped up and we all wanted to play for our brother. The offense played team offense and focused on moving the ball quick and playing games with our main guy, Hunter Aquino.
“We did not let off the gas and kept going and the offense managed the ball very well while scoring a lot. It was a complete team win and it was awesome to do it against our rival and make a statement. We wanted to make a statement and have that lion mentality and we showed that the whole game.”
ANC – ranked No. 4 by Phillylacrosse.com – now focuses on a big meeting with mighty Lawrenceville School on Wednesday in New Jersey. After that there’s a non-league game with Central Bucks East and then the Victory Events National Prep Championships where powers like Hill Academy, Culver Academy, Gonzaga and Western Reserve await.
“We have had a great season so far but we are not done,” Bradley said. “We want more.
“We got the FSL chip now and next week we play Lawrenceville, the number two team in the country and it will be a big game. But we are up for the challenge and we are a brotherhood and got all of our backs.”
