There’s not one athlete who didn’t contribute to the highly skilled game Monday between Lower Dauphin and West Perry.
The Mustangs entered the contest undefeated at 17-0. Lower Dauphin field hockey arrived in Perry County 14-2 and left it 15-2 giving West Perry its only loss of the regular season. Both teams play in District 3 and in the Mid-Penn Conference.
Unlike Lower Dauphin, West Perry hasn’t historically been a top contender. And, they play in the Colonial Division in the Conference, which is a division gaining steam in terms of skill and competitiveness. The Falcons play in the Keystone Division, which year to year boasts teams that are ranked both nationally and in Pennsylvania.
During Monday’s game, West Perry maintained possession for a majority of the first quarter. Lower Dauphin continued to find its passing lanes and worked together to try to take control of the game. But, after the first, possession was even and the teams’ backfields turned away goals with excellent communication, as well as smartly sending the ball out and wide.
In a game with that much intensity, there were a handful of near misses. Katelyn Strawser scored first for the Falcons on a penalty stroke. While the Mustangs’ Autumn Albright landed a goal off a penalty corner redirect to level the score 1-1. Jordan Byers sent the ball in from the top of the circle.
There was drama in the first half after Falcons freshman Lily Rost literally took one for the team. Rost was positioned in front of the goalie when Alexa Lehman slammed a ball into the circle. The ball hit a stick and Rost was ready to deflect it into the cage. West Perry’s keeper got her pads on the ball and unintentionally cleared it into her face.
Rost, luckily, only had a cut above her lip line. She was able to rally and rejoin her teammates. And, not only did she join them, she added a finishing touch to a corner in the fourth with 5 seconds on the clock to score the game-winner. Vic Kutz assisted her.
Lower Dauphin 0-1-0-1: 2
Goals: 2
Assists: Kutz, 1
Shots: 4
Penalty Corners: 16
Saves: Kai Killian, 2
West Perry 0-1-0-0: 1
Goals: Albright, 1
Assists: Byers, 1
Shots: 3
Penalty Corners: 5
Saves: Marty Morrison, 2
