One of the best high school field hockey duos in the state of Pennsylvania is Conestoga’s Shae Wozniak and Lexi Patterson.
The senior Pioneers have been playing the game together since they were pint-sized children. And, it shows.
“That No. 6 and 7 are legit,” Mechanicsburg head coach Tonya Brown said. “They know where each other is before looking up.”
Conestoga won 5-2 Saturday at Exeter Township High School in the 2024 PIAA Class 3A quarterfinals. Conestoga plays Central Bucks West at 6 p.m. at Methacton High School today.
Stoga is 20-3 and the No. 2 seed out of District 1. And, CB West is 22-4 and the No. 7 seed out of District 1.
When the Pioneers learned that they’d be playing Mechanicsburg in the quarterfinals, they immediately went to work on their attitude. They entered the contest having reflected on how they wanted to start the game.
They knew that the Wildcats were tough and strong, and they studied their style of play, especially following the 2024 District 3 Class 3A third place contest, where Mechanicsburg beat Wilson in double overtime.
“We knew we were going to play a very aggressive, talented team, and we knew that we needed to come out really hard from the start,” said Wozniak, a Duke commit. “And, the quote on the backs of our shirts is ‘pressure is a privilege,’ and that’s exactly what we did. We had pressure on us and we threw that same pressure back on them. And, I think those connections offensively and defensively supported each other.”
The pacesetting wasn’t going to be left up to Mechanicsburg, the athletes said.
“We knew we were going to play against a phenomenal team today,” said Patterson, a Michigan commit. “From the support from the sideline and to the support on the field, and from our coaches, we were all really great just motivating each other. We played for each other and that’s really important.”
Conestoga ran away with the lead in the first half, almost making it look like the mercy rule could come into effect. But, Mechanicsburg, as expected, started the second half more composed.
7:25 Conestoga takes a 2-0 lead pic.twitter.com/C5B3XXiAyZ
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The Wildcats slammed in two goals to cut the deficit, but it wasn’t enough.
The score was 3-0 at halftime. Conestoga added one more to startle Mechanicsburg into action in the third before the ‘Cats scored their first goal.
The Pioneers move the ball smoothly and efficiently. Their attack penalty corners are lethal. They often have a player properly positioned to net a point or two via redirection, deflection, or tip to widen the scoring margin.
“Our goal this whole season has been to make it to that final game Saturday,” Wozniak said. “I think the fact that we’re so close and we’re so hungry, right now, our energy is so high, the highest it’s ever been. We know we can get there. We know we’re capable of it. And, I think just bringing it for the next game, our hunger is even more this year. We practice a lot of drills that involve connections. We have a lot of vocal communication where we have to say each others’ names during practice. Just to get that vocal and physical communication to the point where I don’t even have to look up to see where we are, because we already know where each other are on the field.”
Mechanicsburg’s Olivia Scheweighart had the bulk of saves between the two goalies that played for the ‘Cats. There were 11 total saves made.
Wozniak had two unassisted goals. Alivia D’Ascanio scored the first goal for the Pioneers midway through the first quarter, assisted by Peyton Esposito. Esposito added another goal to the final five scored, as well as Price Orcutt.
Esposito assisted on that one, too. Esposito’s goal was assisted by Aubrey DelOrefice.
Carly Valentino broke the ice for the Wildcats with an assist from Libby Olivetti. And then the Libby scored off an assist from her twin Mary.
Mechanicsburg had three corners. The Pioneers took 15 shots, and had 14 corners.
“My thoughts are that we really prepped very well for this game all week since the win over Wilson,” head coach Regan Marscher said. “We knew that Wilson played Mechanicsburg for that 3-4 spot, it was such a close game. We were really prepared for their style of play.”
This Conestoga team has had plenty of heartache, Marscher said. They haven’t moved out of the semifinals spot throughout the past four seasons. It’s something she’s hoping this senior class can finally experience.
“They’ve been to the state semis since their freshman year,” Marscher said about Wozniak and Patterson. “They were starters for us back then, this doesn’t phase them and they play with such leadership. It trickles down to all the girls. It’s been a delight. We’ve had some heartache along the way. We’re hoping this is our year. I always say I’m so proud. I adore this squad in particular this season. The next game is CB West and we’re going for it.”
Marscher added that Mechanicsburg is going to be a team to watch in the near future.
“Our seniors laid the groundwork for us to become a great team,” Brown said. “Our youth have learned from really great seniors. Our gaps of our three seniors are going to be filled. They got a taste of this. We’ve been in the top eight for three years in a row. We’re a little bit young, needed the experience. Here we are, got more experience this year. They did what they needed to do but No. 6 and 7 are so good. They know where each other is before looking up. But, we have that on our team too in the Olivettis. They’re sophomores and they’re only going to be getting better. In two years, they’ll look like that.”
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Photo: Mechanicsburg vs Conestoga, 2024 PIAA Class 3A quarterfinals, Bob Benscoter
