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The Lackawanna Trail Lady Lions field hockey team gathers around head coach Sandy Spott to celebrate her 300th career win.
Photo Courtesy of Alice Stuffle
Almost 20 minutes of domination to start, the Sept. 20 field hockey game was wiped out by one well-executed rush up the field.
Lackawanna Trail High School responded to a potentially devastating goal by quickly erasing its shocking deficit, then putting together an even stronger stretch of play in the second half.
By the time the Lady Lions had finished scoring three goals in less than seven minutes, they had secured coach Sandy Spott’s 300th career victory with a 5-1 Wyoming Valley Conference field hockey victory over Abington Heights.
Lackawanna Trail (6-2) took 16 shots and six penalty corners before Abington Heights ever made it into the offensive circle.
The Lady Lions, however, were unable to produce any goals with that early flurry.
Suddenly, Karlie Jaeger cleared the ball out of trouble for the Lady Comets and got it to Kara Byrne, who sent it up the right side. Kristi Polizzano took in Byrne’s pass and dribbled before sending a pass into the circle.
Freshman Paige Notarianni, who has scored three of her team’s four goals this season, took Polizzano’s assist and slipped a shot into the corner of the cage.
“That was awful,” Spott said. “But that happens to us sometimes.
“Most of the time, thankfully, we come back stronger.”
The response the Lady Lions put together was too much for even Megan Conaboy to hold back. The Abington Heights goalie finished with 27 saves.
“Abington’s goalie is extremely good,” Spott said.
Lacey Croasdale and Cameron Crock, who also had an assist, each had two goals for the second straight game.
Croasdale scored the game-winner before halftime.
Crock started and ended the second-half outburst.
The Lady Lions broke the shutout 4:30 before halftime when Crock sent the ball into the circle where Clarissa Eggleston was able to get off a quick shot from straight on about 12 yards out. Eggleston’s goal tied the game.
Freshman Shelby Croasdale, Lacey’s younger sister, sent the ball into the circle where Lacey pursued it to force the turnover she turned into the game-winner a minute before halftime.
Lackawanna Trail then managed 10 shots and five penalty corners in a game-breaking stretch of 7:48 midway through the second half.
Kayla Grunza assisted Crock to start and end the streak. On the first, Grunza hit the ball off the foot of an Abington Heights defender, high in the air and over the head of Conaboy. Crock was there, near the goal line, to pick the ball out of the air and gently tap it down for the goal.
In between Crock’s two scores, Croasdale got a rebound and scored her second goal.
Croasdale said she was happy to be part of her coach’s milestone.
“She’s amazing,” Croasdale said. “She does everything right.” The same could be said of her players who did not allow a shot for the game’s first 21 or last 21 minutes.
Lackawanna Trail finished with leads of 39-2 in shots and 21-3 in penalty corners.