Westtown School 2024 PAISAA Champions
(Photo by Kathy Leister for PSD)
GLENSIDE, PA--For the first time in school history, the Westtown School girl’s soccer team is the Friends League Champion and the PAISAA State Champion in the same year.
On Nov 12., the Westtown Moose took on the Springside Chestnut Hill Blue Devils (SCH) at Arcadia University for the state championship.
And like they have done year-round, Westtown were able to finish the game with more goals than the other team, getting over the hump of completing the year with two championships.
“Honestly, this was not on our agenda,” Westtown head coach Scott Bissett said. “We’ve always said let’s win the league and go game by game and see how far we can go. The girls did that exactly… third time is the charm.”
Each PAISAA game would go on, and every time Westtown moved on.
Earning the two seed, Westtown worked its way through the bracket, winning all three games while only giving up one goal. They outscored their opponents by an aggregate of 5-1, including a 3-1 win in the quarterfinals against Perkiomen, a 1-0 win against reigning PAISAA champs Episcopal, and now a 1-0 win against SCH.
How did the Moose finish?
They would not get any goals in the first half, but the Moose were certainly firing early and often, dominating the final third and keeping SCH goalkeeper Gracyn Lee-Torchiana and the back line on their toes.
Every other minute in the first 40 minutes felt as though Westtown went on a run to goal, providing themselves with several chances to put a ball through to net. With Westtown’s talent and style of play, it is not surprising to see the team overload on their offensive abilities and playmakers.
Avani Patton took several hard shots on goal that were ultimately denied. Camille Bley and Linnet Laiser had a few chances while also passing the ball thru to goal and creating opportunities for teammates to make a play on net. Noelle Clabaugh and Kaitlin Boston created separation and took a few deep shots from beyond the 18.
If teams could win halves without scoring, Westtown would have taken the first half. SCH had some chances as well, but with the way the Moose took charge from the start, it was surprising that they did not have anything to show for it on the scoreboard.
Westtown and SCH Highlights
So, while content with the way they were playing, Westtown adjusted their thinking a bit at halftime to really focus.
“We had a lot of chances in the first half; we missed some easy ones,” Clabaugh said. “And the second half, we knew we had to put our chances away if we wanted to win the game. We had to keep striving, get our chances off, and put one in the back of the net.”
Noelle Clabaugh on Winning Their Final Game and Hoisting PAISAA Trophy
It may have made sense that the first half was scoreless. After all, both teams had won their conference championships, and of course both teams were in the championship game for PAISAA. And according to Bissett, the tape he went over on SCH prior the game also suggested similarities between both clubs.
“We looked at them being the complete same as us,” Bissett said. “When you look at their roster, it is such a talented team, so it was going to come down to marginal differences.”
True.
In this case, the marginal differences would be a set play -- more specifically a free kick from Brianna Bartsch from roughly 30 yards away that just nestled underneath the crossbar and out of the reach of Lee-Torchiana, giving the Moose a 1-0 lead with a little over 21 minutes to play.
It is a familiar play for Westtown. Over the season, the Moose have called on Bartsch to connect on several set plays, either off free kicks or corners. She has executed often in both, so her goal against SCH was representative.
“I just approached it like all the other ones,” Bartsch said. “I went up to it and visualized just how I did the other ones… and I told myself, hit in the goal and then I did.”
Of course, there are many units to a soccer team besides the forwards and offensive positions. Westtown stood strong on defense for the entire match, especially the final half.
Westtown Junior Brianna Bartsch talks about Her Game Winning Goal.(video/ Jeremy Goode)
Game winning Goal by westtown Jr, Brianna Bartsch. (video/ Kathy Leister for PSD)
Of course, there are many units to a soccer team besides the forwards and offensive positions. Westtown stood strong on defense for the entire match, especially the final half.
Additionally, Westtown junior goalkeeper Lucy Smith rose to the occasion and stopped every shot on goal, often diving in front and to the side to stop a hard shot by SCH.
“I’m really proud of me and my defense,” Smith said. “In the regular season, I don’t have a lot to do because my defense is so strong. And they came out there strong today, and I just cleaned up what they couldn’t.”
Winning is not new for the girls and their program at Westtown. They have been dominating the Friends School League for years and have had deep runs during the PAISAA as well. But the winning never gets old for Westtown.
“It’s an ecstatic feeling,” Clabaugh said. “We worked so hard. We came a long way and it’s just nothing but positive vibes.”
It also helped to have a motivating factor coming into the game. While Westtown had a great season the year before, they lost in the PAISAA championship. They did not want to make that a habit, especially for a second straight year.
Lucy Smith Talks About Her Defense and winning state Championship. (vdeo/ Jeremy Goode)
Westtown junior goalie Lucy Smith displayed strong defense on the net in championship game vs. SCHA. (photo/ Kathy Leister for PSD)
It could well be said that they learned from last years’ experience.
“Last year, we were really nervous, and I think that really affected our play,” Bartsch said. “But I think this year we went into it, and we played and put the ball to the ground and did our thing.”
The culture has been built at Westtown thanks to several years of Bissett implementing his tactics, plays, and players. They expect this level of success. Now, it is just a matter of continuing the trend.
“We managed to just build a really positive culture this year,” Bissett said. “We lost four or five starters. So, as long as we’re doing the right thing, which I think we try to do, it’s going to attract people, and we just keep trying to build it.”
After getting over the hump and winning both titles, the Westtown girl’s soccer program finds itself content. Even for Bissett, it is new territory. But now he has a blueprint for winning both titles during the same season.
“What do you do now? You try to do it again,” Bissett said. “That’s the reality; we’re always going to try to win our league and we know that when it comes to state’s, it’s such a close game.”
