PA – Central Athletic League | Archive | June, 2022

WEST GOSHEN >> Dominance has its rewards. No, its not a tag line for a credit card commercial, but it could be the slogan for the 2022 Conestoga High School girls lacrosse season.
The Pioneers came into Saturday morning’s PIAA 3A championship tilt with Manheim Township winners of 18 straight contests, and 24 of 25 games. They have beaten just about everyone District 1 had to offer; now, it was the challenge by the District 3 champion, who had scored 55 goals in its three state games, that was keeping them from a championship.
The ladies from Berwyn proved move than able. They scored the game’s first five goals en route to a 15-7 victory at West Chester East’s Harold I. Zimmerman Stadium. The title is the school’s first since beating Radnor in 2016. The Blue Streaks (19-2) fell in the championship game for the third time in five years.“I’m definitely super excited,” said Conestoga star Kate Galica. “I’m so glad we got the win. We worked so hard and we won the Central League and the districts, so its great to win states to get all three.”
“A lot of emotions, happy tears, sad tears that our seniors are leaving,” added Kiki Liebezeit. “I’m just glad I’m going out with these people and going out with a win.”
Chloe Brown, who scored the game-winning goal in the semifinal contest against Garnet Valley, won the opening draw control and set Conestoga on its way by getting the opening marker just a minute into the game.Brown turned provider minutes later as she assisted on a goal by Ellie Wisch. Then, in short order, Melissa Hewitt, Galica and Liebezeit dented the net to make it a 5-0 lead with 13:35 left.
After being held to a lone assist against Garnet, Galica was eager to exert her influence on the score sheet.
“I was not too happy with my show,” she said. “I was definitely hungry for a championship. Last year, we lost in the semis. And in field hockey as well. I was definitely hungry for a state championship, as were we all.”

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ELVERSON — Everything about the appearance of Kris Henning on the Garnet Valley sideline reads “coach.” He exhibits a locked-in focus on the game, the willingness to pull players aside and the tone to constructively share observations.

Everything fits the picture … until you see the brace enrobing his left leg, and until you ask Henning where he’d like to be on Saturday, when the Jaguars will play for a PIAA Class 3A championship against Central League foe Radnor at West Chester East (12 noon).

“I absolutely **** standing on the sidelines,” Henning said after a recent Class 3A state tournament victory for the Jaguars. “I’ve become accustomed to it. I just learned to take it one day at a time and hopefully there’s light at the end of the tunnel.”

Henning might be the best lacrosse player in Pennsylvania never to play a high school game. Well, that’s not entirely true. He’s played one, the opener this season, an overtime win over St. Joseph’s Prep in which Henning scored a goal. But the junior midfielder re-injured his left knee, the third time he’s had an issue with that leg, wiping out the rest of his season almost before it started.

When the Jaguars met the Hawks Tuesday at Springfield in a PIAA Class 3A semifinal, Henning was on the sidelines, cheering on his team. It’s not where he wants to be. But of the alternatives, it’s become the best of the lot.

“It’s a great group of guys,” Henning said. “I love supporting them. As long as we keep winning, that’s all right.”

Henning’s absence speaks volumes about what the Jaguars have accomplished. Henning is a polished midfielder, with decent physical size at 5-10, a rocket shot, soft hands and playmaking ability. He impressed sufficiently with his club team, Big 4 HHH, to have committed to Penn State.

But the high school calendar has been a minefield. He had his freshman season, in which he was likely to be a contributor for the Jaguars, wiped out by COVID as he was recovering from a knee issue late the previous summer, though he was able to return for a relatively full club slate once the initial pandemic-related pauses ended. He got hurt in the spring of his sophomore and junior years, too, meaning his body of high school work is that solitary game.

Missing Henning has made Garnet Valley’s quest to make a first state final that much harder. On paper, an attack line led by seniors Max Busenkell and Joey Halloran, backed by a pair of Division I talents in Ryan Nealon (Holy Cross) and Henning makes for a daunting challenge.

But coach Frank Urso never got to see that squad in action. Most of the 2022 season has been devising ways to compensate for Henning’s absence. It’s only in states that District 1’s fifth place team has really put those pieces together, with underclassmen like Luke Mingioni and Colin Smith maturing at just the right time.

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Garnet Valley’s Luke Mingioni, left, celebrating with teammate Joey Halloran after a goal in

the first half of Tuesday’s state semifinal win over St. Joseph’s Prep, is among the young

midfielders stepping up in place of the injured Kris Henning, who has adopted a vital

mentorship role on the Garnet Valley sideline. (Pete Bannan – MediaNews Group)

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SPRINGFIELD — It was a situation Chole Brown never dared to dream about; game tied, time running down and the ball on her stick with a chance to win an important game.

That was the position the sophomore found herself in at the end of Tuesday’s PIAA Class 3A semifinal game between Conestoga and Garnet Valley at Springfield High. It was one she could handle.

Brown fired from about 15 feet out to beat Garnet Valley goalie Mak Butler to score with 3.3 seconds left as the Pioneers edged the Jaguars, 8-7.

The win puts Conestoga (23-1) into its first state final since winning the title in 2016. The Pioneers will face District 3 champ Manheim Township, which lost to Harriton in 2019. The game will be Saturday at West Chester East at noon.

“It came all the way up top and I was able to score a lucky goal,” Brown said. “I never scored the game-winning goal before.

“It’s all just so amazing. I was on varsity last season, but not as a starter. We made it to the semifinals then, but we lost on this field to Radnor. We’re all working together to be successful. That’s why getting to the championship is so special for our seniors, who were going back for graduation (Tuesday) night. We knew how special this would be for them.”

The luck factor may be debated, but what is not in dispute is the goal sent the bench and the ‘Stoga fans into elation.

“We’ve been working hard all season,” Brown said. “Our coach (Amy Orcutt) says that every accountability sprint, every sprint we did led up to this game and we just fought really hard and believed in each other.”

The two Central Division foes were locked in a 5-5 tie at halftime, and the defensive struggle continued into the second half. The half went nearly nine minutes before someone dented the net.

Melissa Hewitt scored to put Conestoga up, 6-5.

The Jaguars soon took advantage of being two players up. Kaitlyn Stankavage scored off a free position to knot the score at 6-6. Another long stretch favoring the defenses ensued until, with three minutes left, Ava Kane whistled an 8-meter shot past Conestoga goalie Alanna Lepore for a 7-6 lead.

That lasted for all of 40 seconds until Ellie Wisch tied the score with 2:21 left.

The winning goal, however, did not escape controversy. Conestoga was holding for the last shot when there was a question whether a whistle blew to signal a re-start after a foul, which would have resulted in a false start and a turnover for Conestoga.

After a conference, the referees decided there was no false start, and awarded the ball to the Pioneers to set up the frantic final seconds.

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SPRINGFIELD — When Sam DiTrolio is scoring goals, you know Garnet Valley is having a good time

The faceoff specialist was dominant from the “X” in Tuesday’s PIAA Class 3A semifinal game against St. Joseph’s Prep. You know, a typical DiTrolio effort. But goals? Not really his thing.

When the three-sport standout, who earned first-team All-Delco in football and wrestling, gets out in open space and fires missiles past a helpless goalie however, watch out. And his teammates feed off his energy.

A rare sight: DiTrolio scored two goals as Garnet Valley punched its ticket to the Class 3A state boys lacrosse final for the first time with a 20-9 shellacking of the mighty Prep. The Jaguars will play top Central League foe Radnor in the state championship game Saturday.

“I think he only had one goal the rest of the season and he put up two today,” Danny Husain, who played lights out on defense, said of DiTrolio. “It was really exciting to see Sam pop off like that.”

Maybe it’s his shaggy beard and flowing red locks or lunch-pail attitude DiTrolio brings that is so infectious. Either way he is happy to be part of a team that is one win away from program history.

“We were thrown some curveballs, some injuries, but we came together as a team, we work together as a team and we solve problems as a team. Now we’re in the state finals and it’s a great feeling,” he said.

The Jaguars were relentless with their defensive pressure right out of the chute. Husain and Cory Urso, in particular, were major factors in forcing the Hawks to make a slew of early mistakes that cost them at the other end of the field.

GV raced out to a 6-1 advantage after 12 minutes. Max Busenkell scored with 1.5 seconds left on the clock and the Hawks were wearing the collective look of a defeated team after one quarter.

That Jags tend to do that against teams they outwork.

“It’s what wins games. We have a chip on our shoulder,” DiTrolio said. “You know, we’re not always going to be the most talented team; we have some great talent on the team, obviously, but us having that extra grit and that fight to get the ground ball every time is what carries us and it helps us win games.”

Busenkell tallied a game-high six goals, but it was Andrew Goldt who set the tone with back-to-back goals in the first period. Goldt found the back of the net for the third time 1:32 into the second quarter to give Garnet a commanding 7-1 lead.

It only got worse for Prep.Ryan Nealon stole a lazy pass around midfield and darted the other way to score Garnet’s eighth goal of the first half. Fourteen seconds later, long pole Sean Gallagher scored immediately off a DiTrolio faceoff win to make it a 9-1 lead. Zach Myers scored off another turnover with 7:42 to go before intermission and Nealon notched his second of the period with 3:19 left. GV led 11-2 at the break.

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Garnet Valley’s Max Busenkell pumps himself up after scoring in the first half Tuesday in a PIAA Class 3A

semifinal win over St. Joseph’s Prep. (Pete Bannan – MediaNews Group)

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BRYN MAWR >> It wasn’t like the Conestoga girls needed to be reminded what happened a year earlier, but head coach Amy Orcutt wanted it fresh in her squad’s mind.

Deadlocked at halftime in Saturday’s PIAA 3A Quarterfinal, Orcutt reiterated exactly how the Pioneers’ 2021 lacrosse season ended with a loss to Radnor just one game away from the state final. And ’Stoga channeled that added motivation into scoring seven of the next nine goals, on its way to an 11-8 triumph over the Raptors.

“Amy gave us a talk. ‘Who wants to win it more?’” reported sophomore attacker Ellie Wisch. “(Radnor) ended our season, and we really got motivated from her speech. We felt we owed it to ourselves.”

In all, the Pioneers (22-1 overall) outscored Radnor 7-4 in the second half to move one step closer to a state crown. They will face another Central League rival, Garnet Valley, in the semifinal round on Tuesday at a time and site to be determined.

“We feel like we can win (the state title), but we have to make sure we don’t beat ourselves,” Wisch said.

“Moving on is always exciting, but there are two more big games left,” Orcutt added. “We have to take this one day, and one step at a time.”

It was a crushing end to the season for the Raptors (18-6), the ’21 state champions. Radnor never led in the contest, but did rebound to tie the score after each of Conestoga’s first five goals.

“Playing Radnor is always a challenge,” Orcutt said. “They are one of our longstanding rivals, and after we beat them (12-4) in districts, I knew they were going to come out ready to fight.

“Maintaining possession and momentum in our court, instead of going back-and-forth, was really important. It was an emotional game and it was critical that we stayed one step ahead.”

The Pioneers went 3-0 against the Raptors this season, but Saturday’s battle was much more like the first – a 10-9 squeaker in late March.

“Our players worked hard all season,” said first-year head coach Lis Zuern. “It wasn’t easy to bounce back after the last time we played (Conestoga), but we did it. We made the adjustments and we gave them a game.

“And we showed a lot of grit. Even at 11-6, they didn’t give up.”

At 5-5 early in the second half, ’Stoga finally opened some breathing room with four goals in less than three minutes. During the stretch, Wisch was 5-0 on face offs, and junior star Kate Galica sparked the surge with a power play goal, and then assisted on goals by Wisch and senior Melissa Hewitt.

“Unfortunately, we were a man-down and the momentum shifted,” Zuern said.

Soon after that Wisch scored off a free position, and it was suddenly 9-5.

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Conestoga’s Melissa Hewitt (22) celebrates a goal against Radnor during Saturday’s PIAA Class 3A quarterfinal at Harriton

High School. (Owen McCue – MediaNews Group)

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ELVERSON — Max Busenkell called his team’s previous game one of the biggest upsets in program history.

So you might fear if you were Garnet Valley, that playing on a Saturday morning, far from home, against an opponent that on paper they were superior to, could perhaps produce an emotional letdown in the quarterfinals of the PIAA Class 3A tournament.

If any Jaguar was dozing against Cumberland Valley, however, one thunderous swipe of Sean Gallagher’s stick would’ve awakened them.

The Garnet Valley defense that spearheaded the somewhat stunning first-round toppling of La Salle cued another states victory Saturday, allowing just one first-half goal on the way to an 11-5 win at Twin Valley Middle School.

The Jaguars (18-6) advance to the state semifinals for the second consecutive year. That they’ve done so via defense instead of a potent offense is a midstream pivot that is both surprising and welcome.

“Everything, I feel like, is just clicking now,” defender Bear Evans said. “Couldn’t be more proud of all of us and how we’ve been playing. What we’ve done in these past few weeks, we’ve grown so much as a whole defense.”

Gallagher was the catalyst Saturday, with a sweeping check to cause a turnover five minutes into a scoreless game in which GV had already come up empty on a man-up chance. The United States Naval Academy signee outletted in transition to Drew Goldt, who touched it to Busenkell to fire home.

“That gets everyone up,” Evans said. “Gal gets a nice GB and runs it down the field. That gets everyone pumped.”

Two minutes later, a yard sale in the defensive zone off a Tyler Saccomandi hit led to the Jags pushing the pace, Busenkell finding Ryan Nealon.

Between Tuesday, when Garnet Valley jumped out to a 7-5 lead and held on for a 7-6 win over the District 12 champs, and Saturday’s 7-1 lead, the Jaguars allowed just two goals in 48 minutes of lacrosse. They entered states allowing 7.1 goals per game, in a league where at least two other teams (Radnor and Springfield) cut more fearsome defensive reputations.

There are many factors at play. Sam DiTrolio was 13-for-18 on faceoffs to control possession, though the team was only 6-for-10 in the first half yet still allowed just three total Cumberland Valley shots. Drew Keaveney came up with six big saves when needed but wasn’t heavily taxed.

With Gallagher, an LSM at the next level but a lockdown matchup defender for the Jags, replacing Towson-bound All-Delco Sam Morin last year, roles had to shift. Evans and Saccomandi returned with experience, and Daniel Husain, a wrestling All-Delco, has grown into the starting job at a position where the weakest link rather than the strongest determines a team’s stinginess.

“Everyone has just filled their role now,” Evans said, “and we’re just clicking.”

On the other end, it was the Busenkell show early, the Notre Dame signee crossing 150 points for the season. He tallied five goals and two assists, completing his hat trick with 5:49 left in the first half. Despite nine saves – including four point-blank denials of Busenkell howitzers – from Jacob Burd, the Jags scored early and often. Part of that was an Eagles defense missing two starters due to injuries.

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Garnet Valley LSM Trevor Saccomandi. (MediaNews Group staff photo)

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WORCESTER TWP. — The record was clear, the information uncluttered, the situation understood Saturday by Marple Newtown’s boys lacrosse team.

Allentown Central Catholic, the Tigers knew, had won its last 32 games, including all 19 this season. To the Tigers, that meant there could not, would not be a 33rd.

“All we were thinking is that we’re 0-and-0 right now and they’re 0-and-0,” MN senior Damien Bogsch said. “Once you get to the playoffs, it doesn’t matter about your record.”

Sufficiently disinterested in anything the Vikings had achieved, Marple Newtown was at its best early and late in the second round of the PIAA Class 2A tournament, and that was good for a 16-10 victory at Methacton High. In improving to 18-4, Tigers earned a semifinal confrontation against 16-2 Lampeter Strasburg Tuesday, when they will consider both teams 0-and-0 again.

In a match that was tight until they scored six times in the final 8:11, the Tigers enjoyed four goals and three assists from Charlie Box, three goals and two feeds from Bogsch, and two scores apiece from Ryan Keating, Joey Yukenavitch, Rob Wagner and Brian Box. Dave Bertoline added a goal.

For the Vikings, Benjamin Scandone, Nicholas Pomajevich, Liam Drake and Caiden Shaffer each scored twice.

“The boys played very well,” said Central Catholic coach Kevin O’Neill, the former Springfield lacrosse and football player and son of former Darby-Colwyn football coach Bill O’Neill. “We just got outnumbered by a better team today. Anything can happen in the sport of lacrosse. Teams go on runs and they had some very good runs today.”

After Driscoll scored 1:13 in to announce the Vikes’ intentions, the Tigers completed the first quarter on a 4-0 run. When Box stole the ball in tight and scored 2:08 into the second quarter, Marple Newtown had had a 6-2 lead that turned out to be not as stable as it felt.

Pomajevitch, Drake (from Augustine Barr) and Shaffer scored the final three goals of the half to narrow the difference to 6-5, and when Drake and Scandone scored early in the third, Marple Newtown was behind, 7-6. That’s when the Tigers showed why they were the District 1 2A Schampions, reacting with a passion that led to a chippiness that would define the final 17 minutes.

“We feel that if we play the way we can play, that if we play Marple Newtown lacrosse, we can beat anybody,” coach Kevin Merchant said. “That’s what we were looking for: Be us.”

That’s when Bogsch and Charlie Box, in particular, went to work, leading an eruption with their senior skills and wits. Box scored three times in the final 22 minutes, while Bogsch had two goals and two assists. It was a Box score on a delivery from Bogsch that gave the Tigers an 11-9 lead, before a Bogsch goal began to open a meaningful gap.

“He gives me that look and I give him that look,” Bogsch said. “And we score goals. That’s how it works.”

That senior combo was functional Saturday, but so was the alert goalkeeping of Jack Welsh, who did as much as anyone to snip that Central Catholic streak.

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Marple Newtown’s Charlie Box passes the ball as Penncrest’s Liam Fickes defends in the first

half of District 1 Class 2A final at at Ridley. (PETE BANNAN – DAILY TIMES)

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ROSEMONT >> It was a game that left both sides deservedly teary-eyed.

One could argue neither Garnet Valley nor Owen J. Roberts deserved to feel the sting of a season-ending loss. At the end of a three-overtime contest in the PIAA Class 3A quarterfinals, however, one side cried tears of joy while the other felt a crushing blow.

Garnet Valley’s Mia Raucci made sure her squad was the one celebrating through their waterworks.

Raucci scored with seven seconds left in the third overtime off an assist from Maddie Shoemaker to give the Jaguars a 10-9 win and advance them to Tuesday’s state semifinal against Conestoga.

“I knew from the beginning we had the ‘W’ but it felt amazing,” Raucci said. “After three overtimes, they’re (OJR) a great team. I’m just so proud of our team.”

Garnet Valley wound the clock for one shot in the extra period, but it never came as the Wildcats’ defense swarmed on the final play attempt. OJR goalie Korrigan Sweeney made a phenomenal stop at the end of the second OT to keep the Wildcats’ hopes alive.

With time winding down in the final overtime period, Garnet Valley coach Jenny Dooley called ‘Cash.’ Raucci made her cut and received a pass from Maddie Shoemaker before taking about two steps and firing in the top right corner for the game-winner.

“We’re really good with our cuts I think, and Maddie Shoemaker, she’s a great feeder,” Raucci said. “She just hit me and it was there.”

“I couldn’t even believe it,” Garnet Valley’s Sophie Kingsborough said. “It felt like a shock. I just wanted to hug her as hard as I could. It was an amazing feeling.”

At the 12:43 mark of Saturday’s state quarterfinal, three extra periods and a game-winning goal seemed unlikely. The Jaguars led 9-5 after a goal by Mia Zebley.

Owen J. Roberts had a rally fall just short in a 6-5 district quarterfinal loss to the Jaguars on May 21. This time the Wildcats battled all the way back.

Colby Wasson cut the lead to 9-6 with 8:44 left after Alexa Vogelman caused a turnover.

Ava Clemson pulled OJR within two, 9-7, less than two minutes later. Blakely Doyle scored another with 6:53 to go to make it a 9-8 game and the pressure was on.

The Wildcats saw a shot go off the post and three or four other chances end in turnovers before Clemson completed the comeback by scoring with 50 seconds left in regulation.

The Jaguars won the ensuing draw control, but Gabbi Koury forced a turnover to send the game into overtime.

“That’s who they are,” OJR coach David Schlesinger said of the comeback. “It’s who they are as athletes, as people. They’re incredibly tough-minded, talented, wonderful kids.”

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The Garnet Valley girls lacrosse team celebrates after a three-overtime win over Owen J. Roberts

during Saturday’s PIAA Class 3A quarterfinal at Harriton High School. (Owen McCue – MediaNews Group)

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UPPER PROVIDENCE >> It basically served as a seeding game for the upcoming PIAA Class 6A playoffs. But there was much more up for grabs by Spring-Ford when it hosted Haverford High in Thursday’s District 1-6A third-place game.

The Rams were looking to repay the Fords for ending their 2021 state run after they won a district championship. They also wanted a memorable day for their senior players, who were closing out their scholastic time on their home field.

But Haverford had its own ideas and ultimately came away with a 2-1 victory at Ram Park to enter the PIAA tournament on a winning note.

The second-seeded Rams (20-3) were handled by Ford pitcher Emma Taylor, who worked a one-hit shutout on the locals through the first five innings. Taylor went on to limit Spring-Ford to four hits, an earned run in the sixth, one walk and 10 strikeouts.

“She’s a competitor, a great kid,” Haverford head coach Bob Newman said of Taylor, who’s heading to Yale University following graduation. “She’s a great student-athlete.”

The Rams countered with Jess Fliszar, called on to pitch while normal starter Jules Scogna continues recovering from cramps she sustained during Tuesday’s semifinal-round game with North Penn. She yielded Haverford’s runs in the third and fourth innings, with seven hits and two walks against seven strikeouts.

“Jules needs another day or two,” SF head coach Tim Hughes said in regard to Scogna’s recovery.

Hughes noted Fliszar, who relieved Scogna in the seventh inning of Tuesday’s loss to the Knights, has started selected games for the Rams this spring.

“For Jess, it was an opportunity to get some innings,” he added. “She’s come along well.”

Among other tweaks to the Rams’ lineup were Karissa Potteiger, the regular catcher, playing second with Ava Bainbridge working behind the plate.
Fourth-seeded Haverford got its first run in the third when Taylor singled up the middle, scoring Kylie Ingram (safe on error). Its ultimate game-winner came when Grace Ciochetto (single) beat the relay throw to home plate off Madie Culbertson’s hit to third.

It ended up being sufficient for the Fords, the Central League’s champions the past two years, to go into states as the third seed … the third year in a row they qualified for PIAA play. The state’s 2021 6A runners-up to North Penn — they had 10 seniors graduate from that team — will open states Monday against either the District 2 or 4 champion.

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Haverford outfielder Sarah Hubley (10) is congratulated by teammate Madie Culbertson after an inning-ending catch against Spring-Ford

during the District 1-6A third-place game Thursday at Spring-Ford. (Austin Hertzog – MediaNews Group)

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MECHANICSBURG — Strath Haven didn’t play its cleanest game Saturday at Cumberland Valley High School in the quarterfinals of the PIAA Class 2A girls lacrosse tournament, but the Panthers did enough to dispose of Chartiers Valley, 15-9.

The District 1 runners-up advance to the final four of the state playoffs for a second year in a row. The Panthers will play District 3 champion Twin Valley at Methacton High Tuesday at 3:30 p.m.

Coach Pigeon Graham would like to see crisper passing and better communication next time out. Though the Colts were never in the game against the Panthers, they were a nuisance in the second half, trimming what had been a comfortable eight-goal Haven lead to five with 10 minutes to go.

If not for a few caused turnovers by Mack Murray and Annie Dignazio, and otherworldly goalkeeping by sophomore Ava Yancey, perhaps the Panthers would’ve been forced to sweat this one out.

“I think it’s just cleaning up everything, you know? Better decision making on our part, better communication on defense and better shot selection on offense,” Graham said. “We’ve got some work to do, for sure. Tuesday’s going to be a totally different level of competition whoever we meet.”

The Panthers do have the best goalie in the Central League at their disposal. Yancey, who was an all-league selection in her first full season as a varsity starter, showed outstanding reflexes in net and limited the damage.

“I knew I had to get right in my head, stay focused and play for my team,” said Yancey, who finished with 12 saves. “Do whatever I can to help us win.”

Yancey has given Graham everything and so much more manning the cage. After losing key starters on the back line to graduation, the Panthers have been a work in progress defensively, but Yancey has been a rock between the pipes.

“I couldn’t be prouder of her and the job she’s done for us,” Graham said. “And you know, she did a good job of kind of biding her time, getting in the games that she could (last season). She put in her work over the summer and she’s just very athletic and very fast and she has her own way of prepping herself and getting ready. You don’t have to worry about her being heavy in the goal, you know, she’s always the same. We all had a slump in the middle of the season, but in the past six or seven games she’s been awesome.”

Speaking of awesome, junior Laura Conner led the Haven attack with five goals before exiting with her second yellow card late in the second half.

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Strath Haven’s Julia Steere is boxed in by Marple Newtown defenders in the first half Tuesday.

(Pete Bannan/MediaNews Group)

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