GIRLS' LAX: Archbishop Carroll Tops Bonner-Prendie to Clinch PCL Championship Appearance

By Angelise Stuhl , 05/21/17, 12:45PM EDT

ASTON, PA – On Friday afternoon Archbishop Carroll and Bonner-Prendie faced off in the 2017 Philadelphia Catholic League girls’ lacrosse semifinal. The hustle and drive was radiating from both teams as they battled in the 90-degree heat at Neumann University.

2017 PCL LAX Semis Carroll vs. MBAP Highlight Video

Coming into the game, the No. 4 seeded Pandas knew that they were going to have a tough match-up as No. 1 seed Archbishop Carroll finished undefeated in the PCL with a 10-0 record. The Patriots averaged 18.4 goals per game during the regular PCL season and only allowed their opponents to score a total of 11 goals. Carroll’s dominant offense shined once again, as 15 different Patriots scored en route to their 23-4 victory.

Philadelphia Catholic League MVP, Sam Swart, led Carroll on offense with 5 goals. Swart explained that teamwork has been the key factor to Carroll’s continued success.

“Not just one person does the job, we all do the job together,” said Swart, who will be playing both field hockey and lacrosse at Syracuse University next season. “Everyone is important on the team so a long as we all work together as a team then everything works out fine.”

Post Game Interview with Carroll's Sam Swart

Prendie's senior captains leave advice for their returning teammates

Carroll's Anna Murphy leaves her senior advice for her underclassmen teammates

Prendie’s senior co-captains Paige Brady and Keeley Weis scored the Panda’s two first half goals. Freshman Lindsey Fagan and senior Kristen Doogan both added another goal for the Pandas in the second half.

The Pandas began their 2017 league season on a 5-game win streak and ended in fourth place with a 7-3 record. This year, junior goalie Catriona Corrigan notched over 200 saves on defense and Brady and Weis each scored their 100-goal milestones. The Panda’s most notable wins were against PCL 2016 runner-up Archbishop Wood (15-13) in their first game and against Cardinal O’Hara in their final regular season game (15-10).

Prendie’s second year head coach Amanda McCloskey stated that her senior class has helped establish a stable foundation for Panda’s lacrosse for many seasons to come.

“If I could keep my seniors, I would keep them forever. Just their leadership, even today they were the ones here knowing that we could win,” said McCloskey. “My girls have big shoes to fill, being that we have 7 girls leaving. But we have some awesome freshmen. Lindsey Fagan is a freshman who starts and runs our whole mid-field for us, which is awesome. So we’re not done, next year we are making it.”

“We beat a decent amount of public schools this year, so that’s a huge step for a Catholic school. That’s our mission, that’s our goal, to start playing tough competition, and we want them to give us a chance and say ‘Prendie, who is this? Who are these guys? Where are they coming from?’ That’s our goal moving forward. But I’m so proud of my team,” added McCloskey.

Tomorrow evening at 6:00pm, Carroll will take the field against No. 2 Cardinal O’Hara in the PCL championship at Neumann University. If Carroll wins, this would mark the 17th consecutive PCL title for the Patriots.

“If we win it will definitely be special because it’s the last Catholic league game that I will be playing in with my teammates. It would mean a lot to our whole team and to Archbishop Carroll. 17 for 2017,” said Swart.

MBAP Goals:

Paige Brady – 1

Keeley Weis – 1

Lindsey Fagan – 1

Kristen Doogan – 1

Carroll Goals:

Sam Swart – 5

Anna Murphy – 3

Rachel Matey – 3

Grace Gallagher – 1

Katie Detwiler – 1

Amber Germer – 1