Phillylacrosse.com, Posted 4/22/16
From Staff Report and Courtesy of SuburbanOneSports.com
Luke Homan scored with 30 seconds left in the third overtime Thursday to propel North Penn to a dramatic 10-9 win over visiting Central Bucks East in Suburban One Continental Conference action, giving the Knights their first win ever over the Patriots.
According to LaxPower records, the Knights (6-1, 4-1) had lost the first 15 games played against CB East (6-4, 5-2).
“It was a great win for our program,” said North Penn coach Rick Smith. “We played a lot of defense in those three overtimes. We had maybe two short possessions in all three overtime periods – maybe we had the ball total of 30 seconds in those three overtimes.
“The biggest key today was communication. When most kids are supposed to be tired in the third overtime, our guys are still talking and sliding and recovering and communicating. It was really, really good.”
Anchoring the defense were the Knights’ three starting close defensemen – Collin McConaghey, Tyler Foulke and Owen Kelly – as well as Matt Rinck in net (18 saves).
“The most important thing in the entire game was we had seven different players that contributed on offense, and our defense just really came to play,” Smith said. “They communicated the entire game. Whether we were in the third overtime or the first quarter, the defense just played really, really fundamentally sound against CB East.”
North Penn led 4-3 at halftime and 8-5 through three quarters, but the Patriots outscored the Knights 4-1 in the fourth quarter, setting the stage for overtime where the Knights found a way to win it.
North Penn has won four straight conference games after falling to Central Bucks South in its opener. Hatboro-Horsham is in first at 5-1 in the conference, followed by North Penn and Central Bucks West.
“It was a great win for our program,” Smith said. “Our league from top to bottom is a very, very competitive league.
“We just can’t afford to overlook anyone. We need to play everyone like it’s a championship game.”
Homan finished with two goals and two assists. Nick Keim and Jake Diamond each added two goals. Reece Udinski contributed a goal and three assists, while Nic Conroy, Danny Payne and Max Lehrman also scored. Eric Diamond Andrew Alexander each added an assist.
“The chemistry we have from our freshmen to our seniors – and we had freshmen today scoring,” Smith said. “We are a well-balanced team right now.
“The important thing is we’re staying healthy. The chemistry is amazing. I have 14-15 year-old kids playing with 17 and 18-year-olds. Just last year they were playing youth lacrosse, and now they’re out there on the varsity lacrosse.”
Ryan Brown, Alec Bracken and Mike Ott each scored twice for the Patriots. Logan Nelsen and Owen Griffin notched a goal and an assist, while Brant Billingsley added a goal.
Michael Ott won 19-of-23 face-offs for the Patriots. Ian Mauer and Liam Rosenthal each registered six saves in goal. Griffin led the team with seven ground balls and McIntosh had five forced turnovers.