BUCKTOWN — If the early bird catches the worm, then on Monday night it was the early Wildcat who caught the win.
Owen J. Roberts freshman Madison Hunt scored 45 seconds into the District 1-3A first-round game, then following nearly three full periods of no goals, Hunt and the Wildcats struck three times in a less than four-minute stretch early in the fourth to topple visiting West Chester Henderson, 4-0.
Hunt scored the team’s first two goals, Avery Taylor was credited with two assists and Maddie Reed and Carlota Aldea Martinez also found the back of the cage as No. 11 OJR (14-6 overall) won a first-round district game for the second consecutive season. The result came a full six days after the Wildcats were eliminated by Boyertown in the Pioneer Athletic Conference semifinals, leaving them nearly a week to recollect themselves and mount a final stand for the program’s six seniors.
Five out of the six teams in the PAC’s Liberty Division qualified for districts, with OJR and Spring-Ford both winning first-round Monday games, Methacton and Boyertown received byes as top-eight seeds and Upper Perkiomen made the 2A bracket. As a result, nearly every game against one another is an intense battle.
“I think since we’re in a pretty hard league that it prepares us for these games,” said Taylor, one of those seniors. “It makes us want it more, especially since that loss to Boyertown. We’ve been fighting for it and fixing the mistakes that needed to be improved upon. We’re hungry for more.”
The 22nd-seeded Warriors (7-11-1) began with possession, but OJR wasted little time in flipping control back to their side. Taylor’s first touch came in Henderson’s defensive zone, and she drove toward the baseline before flicking a pass to Hunt that the freshman deposited into the back of the cage less than a minute into the proceedings.
“It’s just using each other,” Taylor said of the early strike. “When they start with possession, then we’re capitalizing on pressuring. Using each other and looking for Maddie when that circle is wide open – it’s important to not hold onto the ball (for too long).”
“I was just waiting on the opposite side of the circle for Avery to go baseline,” Hunt added of her role in the goal. “When I saw her start to beat her defender I started cutting to get around my defender. Right when she passed I cut in front and hoped for the best when I hit it, aiming for the back of the cage.”
Scoring so early made it seem like the Wildcats would pile on to their lead, especially because they held advantages in possession, passing, shots on goal (12 to five) and penalty corners (seven to two) as the contest progressed.
However, neither team managed to score for the rest of the first quarter and all of the second and third, contributing to a rising tension that did not swallow up the Wildcats.
“Our possession was good, our two-touch passing was pretty good and if we lost the ball we got it back,” Hunt said. “We countered every time – we just couldn’t figure out how to score.”
Luckily, neither could Henderson, as OJR goalie Ava Spannuth (five saves) and the Wildcat defense kept the Warriors guessing. Finally, it was Hunt who struck again with 11:15 to go in the final quarter after she had been fouled close to the Henderson cage. Once the Wildcats doubled their lead, the team ran with the forward momentum.
“Scoring again was another relief,” Hunt said. “Now they have to score three more to beat us. I was so frustrated after getting fouled, so after I scored I was so happy.”
Three minutes and 15 seconds later, Taylor nabbed her second assist when she found Reed in front for a 3-0 advantage, and Aldea Martinez beat Henderson goalie Grace Rongaus (seven saves) a mere 22 seconds later for the final margin.
Henderson, down two senior starters to injury, competed valiantly throughout the game. An earlier tally could have made a tremendous difference, but alas, it was not meant to be.
“This team has shown grit all season and dug deep during the game to put forward their best effort,” Henderson head coach Lea Gonzalez said. “It was evenly-matched for a good chunk of time until the end. We had a lot of opportunities we just couldn’t seem to capitalize on. I am exceptionally proud of our goalie Grace Rongaus; she has really grown and has made some incredible saves all season long.”
Henderson’s season came to a close, while the Wildcats advanced to Wednesday’s second round to take on sixth-seeded Conestoga, who received a bye into the second round.
OJR will be the lower seed, but with two victories in hand this season over Boyertown (No. 8 seed) and one against Methacton (fourth seed), the Wildcats will fear no opponent regardless of ranking.
“If we play how we did tonight and when we beat Methacton (on Oct. 9), we’ll have a good game against Conestoga,” Hunt said. “We need to focus on our corners, capitalizing on our two-touch passing and getting rid of the ball fast.”
A win at Conestoga would put the Wildcats into the quarterfinals for the first time in at least a dozen years, which is how long the historical archives go back on the District 1 website.
“Using this energy moving forward into our practice (on Tuesday) and capitalizing on the little things,” Taylor said regarding the keys to another victory. “Using that to our advantage and going into Conestoga with a really good energy ready to win.”
Source: Berkshire mont
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