BY JEFF FALK
HUMMELSTOWN – It’s always a good idea to look before you leap, test the waters before you go for a swim, do a bit of scouting before you take the next step.
If the Elco field hockey program’s progress has been part of a process, then there’s only one place left for the Raiders to go.
On a unseasonable Wednesday evening at Lower Dauphin Middle School’s Courtney Pollock Field, one of the most successful Raider campaigns over the past two decades reached a climax, during a 2-1 loss to Boiling Springs, in the consolation bracket of the District Three Class A postseason tournament. Bubbler Allie Ball notched the decisive tally 2:49 into the second half, and Elco failed to come up with the equalizer the rest of the way, despite numerous penalty-corner-generated opportunities.
With the outcome, the Raiders concluded their amazing fall a couple of wins short of qualifying for the PIAA tournament. Along the way, fifth-seeded Elco compiled a 15-5-2 overall mark and captured its first Lancaster-Lebanon Three titles in 24 seasons.
Boiling Springs, the number-eight seed, upped its seasonal record to 14-7.
“Four years ago, when these seniors were freshmen, was the start of this march,” said Elco head coach Lisa Kercher. “When they were sophomores, they went to districts and lost big. When they were juniors, it was closer. It was little steps, but each year they met their goals. We didn’t think we’d be here now. We’re not disappointed. Every challenge, every goal, they’ve risen to. It’s going to be tough to lose them.
“It’s late in the season, we’re here at districts and we’re on the path to states,” Kercher continued. “That’s the next goal. That’s the next step. We saw it. It was in our grasp. Now it’s the expectation.”
Ball’s game-winner originated from an early-second half corner play. Elco goalie Sarah Shollenberger came up with an initial save, but from the middle of the circle, Ball was there to knock it home.
Teammate Paige Bond drew an assist on the goal.
Elco was awarded seven corners in the second half, but could muster only two shots from them.
“They weren’t on today,” said Kercher of her attackers, specifically. “We talked about it, ‘What do we have to do to make the corners work?’
“I feel like we were on and off, hot and cold,” continued Kercher. “We had some bursts. It was rough bouncing back from Saturday (a 7-0 quarterfinal loss to Newport). That was a brutal game.”
Down a goal and with time running out in the first half, senior Abby Keath netted the tying goal for Elco. Keath’s 13th goal of the season was unassisted and knotted the score at one, 4:43 before the break.
“Abby was trying to pass to Anya (Kissinger) and the ball bounced off the goalie’s pads and in,” said Kercher. “The goalie (Boiling Springs’ Carly Galbraith) came out on her and Anya was on the post.”
The Bubblers had broken out on top 10:25 into the contest, on an Emma Bond goal. Paige Bond also assisted on that tally.
“They had a really fast girl,” said Kercher of the Bubblers. “They had a lot of speed.”
On the final stat sheet, Boiling Springs enjoyed a 7-6 edge in shots, while each side took ten corners.
“We’re further than we ever thought we’d be,” said Kercher. “We didn’t expect to be playing on October 31st. Our goal was to win the section, get to the league playoffs and get to districts. We accomplished everything we set out to. Of course it’s disappointing. But I told them (her players) that it was an amazing season. The level of hockey in Lebanon County has risen, and we’re excited to be a part of that.”
To purchase images in this article email jkfalk2005@yahoo.com, or to view more go to https://lebanonsportsbuzz.com/photo-gallery/.
2018 Elco Field Hockey Results
| Date | Opponents | Outcomes | |
| 9/05 6:00 pm |
Octorara at Elco |
3 4 |
|
| 9/07 4:00 pm |
Elco at Lebanon |
6 0 |
|
| 9/14 3:30 pm |
Elco at Pequea Valley |
9 0 |
|
| 9/18 4:00 pm |
Elco at Northern Lebanon |
3 2 |
|
| 9/19 4:00 pm |
Elco at Annville-Cleona |
2 1 |
|
| 9/21 4:00 pm |
Lancaster Country Day at Elco |
1 1 |
|
| 9/24 4:00 pm |
Governor Mifflin at Elco |
1 0 |
|
| 9/25 4:00 pm |
Elco at Lancaster Catholic |
4 0 |
|
| 9/26 4:00 pm |
Elco at Octorara |
3 0 |
|
| 9/28 4:00 pm |
Lebanon at Elco |
0 2 |
|
| 10/01 4:00 pm |
Northern Lebanon at Elco |
1 2 |
|
| 10/02 4:00 pm |
Lancaster Mennonite at Elco |
1 4 |
|
| 10/03 4:00 pm |
Lancaster Catholic at Elco |
2 5 |
|
| 10/05 4:00 pm |
Pequea Valley at Elco |
0 8 |
|
| 10/08 4:00 pm |
Elco at Lancaster Mennonite |
0 1 |
|
| 10/10 4:00 pm |
Annville-Cleona at Elco |
0 1 |
|
| 10/11 4:00 pm |
Elco at McCaskey |
2 0 |
|
| 10/12 4:00 pm |
Elco at Lancaster Country Day |
2 2 |
|
| 10/16 5:00 pm |
Warwick Elco at Penn Manor |
3 0 |
|
| 10/24 5:00 pm |
Eastern York Elco at Donegal |
0 3 |
|
| 10/27 1:00 pm |
Elco Newport at Lower Dauphin Middle School |
0 7 |
|
| 10/31 5:30 pm |
Boiling Springs Elco at Lower Dauphin Middle School |
||
Lancaster-Lebanon League| League | Overall | |||||||||
| W | L | T | PCT | W | L | T | PCT | GS | GA | |
| Elco | 13 | 1 | 2 | 87.50 | 15 | 4 | 2 | 76.19 | 61 | 25 |
| Annville-Cleona | 13 | 3 | 0 | 81.25 | 15 | 6 | 0 | 71.43 | 62 | 23 |
| Northern Lebanon | 11 | 5 | 0 | 68.75 | 12 | 6 | 0 | 66.67 | 70 | 23 |
| Lancaster Mennonite | 10 | 6 | 0 | 62.50 | 11 | 7 | 0 | 61.11 | 40 | 26 |
| Lancaster Country Day | 9 | 5 | 2 | 62.50 | 10 | 6 | 2 | 61.11 | 52 | 38 |
| Lancaster Catholic | 6 | 10 | 0 | 37.50 | 6 | 12 | 0 | 33.33 | 35 | 51 |
| Octorara | 5 | 11 | 0 | 31.25 | 6 | 12 | 0 | 33.33 | 40 | 51 |
| Lebanon | 3 | 13 | 0 | 18.75 | 5 | 13 | 0 | 27.78 | 21 | 51 |
| Pequea Valley | 0 | 16 | 0 | 0.00 | 0 | 18 | 0 | 0.00 | 3 | 113 |
PIAA District Three
Class A Power Rankings
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