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WYOMING — When Wyoming Area closed within two goals for the second time, Crestwood goalie Reed Karaska went to work.
Karaska made six of his 10 saves while holding the top-seeded Warriors scoreless over the final 18:20 when the visiting Comets pulled away for a 13-6 victory in the District 2 Class 2A boys lacrosse semifinal on Monday.
Fourth-seeded Crestwood will head to Wyoming Seminary’s Klassner Field Wednesday to play the Blue Knights at 4:30 for the district title. Wyoming Seminary defeated Dallas, 8-5, on Monday.
“You could just tell that out of the two teams, one of their seasons would come to end today,” Karaska said after helping the Comets withstand a spirited Warriors comeback. “They definitely, toward the middle and latter parts of the game, showed the heart they wanted to play with.”
Wyoming Area carved into the 6-0 lead that Crestwood opened in the first quarter.
The Warriors got to within 6-4 late in the second quarter and 8-6 midway through the third.
Karaska had made just two saves in 27 minutes while Wyoming Area was scoring its first five goals. He made two straight, including one from close range on F.J. Braccini, before Braccini turned a steal in the Crestwood end into a score with 6:20 left in the third quarter.
The Warriors would not score again.
“Reed’s a (great) goalie,” Wyoming Area coach Shaun Rohland said.
Karaska made timely saves and Crestwood dominated possession in the fourth quarter while outshooting Wyoming Area, 14-5, and adding the game’s final three scores.
“We got back to Crestwood lacrosse,” Karaska said. “We got back to moving the ball quickly, making good decisions, not forcing the ball.”
The strong finish made sure a quick start, fueled by Matt Tirpak, did not go to waste.
Justin Joseph started his usual successful day on faceoffs by getting Wyoming Area the ball to begin the game. The Warriors held possession for the first 4:17 while getting four shots, but only one was on goal.
“We came out a little flatter than I’d like,” said Rohland, who coached Wyoming Area to a Wyoming Valley Conference Division 2 title in just the third year of the program. “We called a timeout and got it settled down at the end of the first quarter.
“We possessed the ball for about six minutes of the first quarter, but we just didn’t take any shots. We got on them to start shooting.”
Once Crestwood had the ball in the first quarter, it produced.
Tripak assisted two goals and scored the other when the Comets connected for their first three goals in a span of 1:05 midway through the first.
Anthony Caporuscio, who had opened the scoring, assisted the next three to make it 6-0 with 1:20 left in the first quarter.
Wyoming Area responded.
Alex Hawk scored before the first quarter ended and connected again in the second quarter, helping close the gap.
Crestwood held the lead through halftime with the help of scoring on its first two-man advantages.
The Comets broke the scoreless tie on the first one. They needed just 3.7 seconds of the second advantage for Kyle Richards to score the second of his three goals in the final minute of the first half to restore a three-goal lead.
“We were moving the ball very well in the first quarter,” Crestwood coach Brian Zabroski said.
Although the fourth seeds needed to beat the top seeds to move within a win of their second district title in three years, the game could hardly be characterized as an upset.
Crestwood finished last in the five-team Division 1 of the WVC. Division 1 teams went 25-0 against Division 2 teams, including Crestwood’s 13-8, regular-season win over Wyoming Area.
“Our attitude was definitely not to underestimate this team,” Karaska said.
Freshman Wyatt Malia had three goals and an assist for the Comets. Tirpak finished with two goals and three assists.
GIRLS LACROSSE
District 2 Class 2A semifinals
Lake-Lehman 11, Crestwood 8
Kate Roberts scored five goals and assisted on two others to pilot the Black Knights’ District 2 Class 2A semifinal win.
Alicia Galasso had three goals and Jess Evans finished with two goals and three assists. Grace Butler finished with 10 saves in the victory.
Natasha Koslop led Crestwood with five goals.
Lake-Lehman will travel to Wyoming Seminary in the championship on Wednesday at 7 p.m.
Wyoming Seminary 12, Dallas 4
Kate Romanowski had five goals and one assist as the Blue Knights advanced to the district final.
Teammate Christina Kilyanek chipped in with four goals and Mia Raineri made 10 saves in the win.
Dallas’ Lauren Delamater had two goals and Darian Guidry finished with six saves.
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District 2 Class 2A semifinal
Crestwood 13, Wyoming Area 6
Crestwood 6 1 3 3 — 13
Wyoming Area 1 3 2 0 — 6
SCORING – CREST, Wyatt Malia (3 goals, assist), Kyle Richards (3 goals), Matt Tirpak (2 goals, 3 assists), Anthony Caporuscio (2 goals, 3 assists), Owen Grigas (goal, assist), Patrick Colo (goal), Thomas Kulak (goal), Samuel Majdic (assist). WA, Alex Hawk (2 goals), Jake Switzer (goal, assist), Sam Greenfield (goal, assist), Dominic DeLuca (goal, assist), F.J. Braccini (goal), Jake Urban (assist). Shots – CREST 42, WA 34. Saves – CREST (Reed Karaska) 10, WA (Curtis Hager) 10.
