TREDYFFRIN — On paper, Monday’s District One Class AAA opening-round game between Radnor and Conestoga didn’t look like a traditional 5-28 matchup.
The Pioneers had blazed through the Central League undefeated for their second title in three years and the Raiders were .500, sure, but the two Main Line rivals had played to a one-goal game earlier this year and anything can happen when Radnor and Conestoga play.
When the teams got going, though, it looked awfully similar to many a 5-28 game as the Pioneers rocked the Raiders, 9-3, at Teamer Field to end Radnor’s season.
Conestoga will host No. 12 Methacton, a 3-1 winner over No. 21 Unionville, Wednesday at 3:30 p.m. but it was Monday’s game that marked the end of a chapter in the Radnor history books. Raiders coach Angel DiRocco made the decision at the beginning of the year to step down at season’s end, and after 10 years of service as the Radnor coach, her time finally came to an end.
“It’s tough,’ DiRocco said, “but it’s not as bad as I thought it was going to be. It’s the playoffs, which is a big thing. Even though it was 9-3, I don’t think the score reflected how the kids played. I thought that we did some nice things out there. It was a little painful, but not as bad as I thought.’
The Pioneers (15-3-0) asserted their dominance early, bolting out to a 5-1 halftime lead, and got four goals and two assists from Meghan Connors to fuel the rout. But the fact that Radnor even qualified for playoffs after having to win two games in a row to end the year with so much on the line was what made the game special for DiRocco.
“That was huge that we won those last two games,’ said DiRocco, who is leaving her post to pursue a master’s degree from Neumann University. “In a way, I kind of wish that we went out on that bubble right there, but when you get into the playoffs — which is an honor to get into — you have to expect that these things can happen. In playoffs, unfortunately, unless you’re the state winner, you’re always ending on a loss.’
Things wouldn’t have been so bad for Radnor (9-10-0) if not for Connors’ play. The senior standout scored the go-ahead goal after Katie Quinn had brought the Raiders even at one, and from there, everything she touched seemed to end up in the back of the net despite 19 saves from Ashley Gubernick. It was a far cry from the Pioneers’ narrow 3-2 win earlier this year, which begs the question: What happened?
“We knew this was super important,’ Connors said. “Coming in as the high seed, we knew that the underdogs really want to beat the high seeds and we played them before. We knew their strengths, we knew their weaknesses, we knew what we had to do. … We didn’t really pay attention to the (rankings). They’re really our rival every year. It’s always a huge game, so the (rankings) didn’t mean anything to us.’
Radnor mounted a mini comeback when Lexi Kenneally scored twice in less than six minutes, the latter on a rocket shot off a Katie Jordan corner insert, but Nicole Bodo’s second goal of the game snuffed out the rally.
“I definitely did (think there was a comeback coming),’ Kenneally said. “Last game, we had a huge comeback, so I thought that we could really turn it around.’
Kenneally, a junior Boston University lacrosse recruit, will have to deal with a new coach for her senior year and she admitted that things will change without DiRocco running the show.
“I think it’s going to be a little different,’ Kenneally added. “DiRocco’s definitely made me love field hockey a lot more than I did coming into the high school. It’s going to be a different. She’s a great coach.’
Processing your request, Please wait....
.png?v=1714292609){kind=logo}
