PLAINS TWP. – Lackawanna Trail spent the season fighting through tense games.
With a berth in the state championship on the line, the Lady Lions ended much of the suspense early.
Emma Thomas scored a hat trick by the end of the third quarter to lead the Lady Lions past Lewisburg, 5-0, in the Nov. 14 Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association Class A semifinal at Wilkes-Barre Area High School.
Thomas scored on the game’s first shot just 1:53 into the game and her second goal gave Lackawanna Trail a 3-0 lead with 2:45 still remaining in the first quarter.
Leigha Joseph sent the ball into the circle to Thomas to assist the first goal.
Lena Ryon, who assisted the next two goals, gave the Lady Lions a 2-0 lead midway through the quarter on an assist by Lauren Fahey.
On the penalty corner, which she combined with Greta Krimmel to help draw, Ryon made a spin move in the middle of the circle to free up space to get off her shot.
Ryon helped transition the ball up field quickly for the next Thomas goal.
Krimmel made it 4-0 with 4:31 left in the second quarter and assisted when Krimmel closed the scoring with 1:31 left in the third quarter.
Lackawanna Trail posted the shutout despite a 9-4 advantage in penalty corners for Lewisburg.
Keira Mulhern made six saves.
A recap of other November playoff games on the way to the state final:
Lackawanna Trail 3, Harrisburg Bishop McDevitt 2
Lackawanna Trail rallied and pulled out an overtime win in the state quarterfinal Nov. 11 at Nazareth.
It was the fourth straight one-goal win for the Lady Lions and the second time in the last three games that they won in overtime.
Lackawanna Trail 1, ELCO 0
LaPLUME – The Lady Lions defense and midfield held Eastern Lebanon County to one penalty corner and zero shots on goal in the Nov. 7 state tournament opener at Keystone College.
ELCO only advanced into the offensive circle twice in the entire first half.
Ryon scored the game’s only goal on a penalty corner with 3:45 left in the third quarter.
Lackawanna Trail 3, Wyoming Area 2
PLAINS TWP. – Wyoming Area goalie Riley Muniz extended the District 2 Class A field hockey championship game.
Lackawanna Trail’s Ryon ended it.
After Muniz made 10 fourth-quarter saves to keep the game tied, Ryon broke the tie and lifted Lackawanna Trail to the title with a solidly struck and perfectly placed shot 2:47 into overtime of the Nov. 1 final at Wilkes-Barre Area High School.
Ryon’s goal ended Wyoming Area’s reign as District 2 champion, stopped the Lady Warriors’ 16-game winning streak and prevented them from pursuing a return trip to the state championship game.
The Lady Lions won the title by avenging a 2-1, home loss in the regular season.
Wyoming Area had a slight statistical advantage in the district final through three quarters.
Lackawanna Trail kept the pressure on throughout the entire fourth quarter, looking for the winning goal. The Lady Lions had nine penalty corner chances in the quarter after getting just two in the first three.
Ryon applied much of the pressure, but while her dribbling and shooting through traffic drew more penalty corners and forced tough saves by Muniz, she could not score.
In the open space of 7v7 overtime, the senior and Central Michigan commit broke through.
Greta Krimmel popped the ball free at the top of the circle and Ryon turned to her right with time and room to operate. She ripped a shot from 13 yards out, just inside the far post, rattling around the cage with the winner.
“Sometimes pressure is a privilege and being put in that position just forces you to finish like that,” Ryon said.
The WVC Division 1 champion Lady Warriors had not allowed more than one goal in any of their previous 10 games, but Lackawanna Trail scored two in the second quarter while taking the lead twice.
Wyoming Area answered each time, then turned to Muniz, who went untested for long stretches of the regular season because of her teammates’ defensive play.
“Riley had a very, very good game, especially in the fourth quarter when they got a lot of corners,” Wyoming Area coach Bree Bednarski said.
Ryon finished with two goals and an assist. She picked off a pass from about 30 yards out and did the rest herself to start the scoring. After Wyoming Area tied the game, Thomas scored on a rebound of a Ryon shot.
