Survive and advance is the name of the game as we enter round two of the PIAA District III Playoffs. Trinity fell last night to West York in a hard fought 11-9 contest while Hershey and Carlisle were able to advance with relative ease. Round two should be more interesting for both winning squads and with a victory here they would advance to the semi-finals and earn a birth in the State Tournament.
(Previews after the jump)
HERSHEY (5) vs HEMPFIELD (4) 7:00PM at Central York High School
- The Trojans have been on fire as of late winning seven straight by a margin of 103-27. That alone is impressive but the fact that Chambersburg, State College, Carlisle, and Susquehannock (all teams with post season aspirations) were their opponets is a strong indicator to how the Trojans have been playing as of late.
They have been complete in all aspects of the game and right now Jake Wilson and George Briggs are in a rhythm on attack that should be a concern for any opponent they face. In the past two games (MPC and round one of the playoffs) they have combined for 16 goals and 13 assists. They run a crafty two man game from behind the cage and with excellent movement and cutters from the top. They can both open up the offense allowing them to hurt you from a variety of spots. Karl VanBlargen is also playing extremely well from the midfield. #21 has another gear which allows him to move the ball down the field with ease. He is a very capable dodger from the top as well. LSM Dave Sickler gets a lot of notice on this blog and it is with due cause. Sickler is game changer and will be a huge part of the game on Thursday. If you saw him in round one his ability to change the middle of the field alters games in Hershey's favor. As with any big game it often comes down to the net minder and Kyle Kondracki looks to be up to the challenge the past two games. If he, Gazzio, and Donahue can continue to play great defense while pressuring the ball and causing turnovers we like Hershey's chances.
In Hempfield they will face one of their more challenging opponents this season. At 17-3 the Black Knights look to offer a serious threat to Hershey's run and can hurt you a number of different ways. One player they'll need to keep a close eye on is Zach Ward who has produced a very impressive 60 goals and 28 assists on the season. Hempfield is allowing an average of 6.3 goals per game but has allowed teams to score 8 or more goals five times this season (this only happened to Hershey twice). Common opponents have been Elizabethtown (who they both beat handily), Carlisle (Hempfield won 9-5), and Cumberland Valley who the Knights just slipped by 10-9 on the road. Hempfield has a laxpower.com rating of 94.0 to Hershey's 95.7.
We are thinking the Trojans have the edge here but there are a lot of unknown factors. If Hershey is on point offensively we expect the rest of the team to follow suit in what should be a successful evening for the Trojans.
CARLISLE (2) vs GOVERNOR MIFFLIN (10) 7:00PM at Eagle View Middle School
- The Herd went undefeated in the Mid Penn during the regular season and won some quality out of conference games which allowed them to earn a 2 seed for districts. Seeding is a big factor is how far teams can go and Coach Kidder's squad is in a very good position to advance. Governor Mifflin upset 7 seed Central York 13-9 on Tuesday night and takes their 15-4 record up against a Herd team that seems to be back on tack.
Carlisle is at their best when they can score early and control the flow of the game the rest of the way. To do this they will need to continue to lean on senior MP player of the year Max Breschi. If freshman George Faller can continue to produce then they should have a very good chance at advancing. Carlisle has a number of other players who can get involved in their offense by committee in Mundell, Scott, and Wallace. This makes them difficult to plan for in conference so that challenge will loom even larger for Mifflin. Sid Ewell is one of the top players in the Mid Penn and should continue to cause headaches for players he is matched up against. Like we said before, big games often come down to the better goalie and when Bowser is on he is one of the best.
The Mustangs have a 91.3 laxpower.com rating (Carlisle is 94.0) and hail from the Berks County. They had defeated Penn Manor 11-3 so this shows you they are in the same league as Carlisle and this game should not be taken lightly. In district playoff lacrosse there are no easy match-ups and any team can sneak up on a higher seed if they are not taken seriously. We don't expect the experienced Herd squad and staff to give them that opportunity. Carlisle will need to keep an eye on Darren Schlegel who managed five scores against Central York.
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