Mastropietro saves Springfield’s day with smart defensive play
NEWTOWN SQUARE » Sixty times this season, Springfield’s Belle Mastropietro has hit the score sheet with a goal or an assist. But with a spot in the PIAA Class 3A tournament on the line Saturday, the junior midfielder’s two biggest contributions came 70 yards from the goal where she usually garners the most attention.
The final intervention clinched an 8-6 win for No. 2 seed Springfield over No. 7 Downingtown East in a rainy battle of Cougars in the District 1 quarterfinals Saturday morning at Marple Newtown. Mastropietro’s stick check on an Olivia Lawton free-position shot in the final minute of play allowed Springfield to regain possession and drain the clock.
Springfield’s cushion in a deliberate and controlled second half came courtesy of another moment of inspiration from Mastropietro. With a dozen seconds left in the first half, she scooped a ground ball near the Springfield crease. After being fouled on the run upfield to halt the clock, she hurled the ball 60 yards to Olivia Pace, who shook loose her defender, fielded the pass, took two strides and buried a shot as time expired.
“After I got the groundball, I looked up at Dana (Carlson) and Julie (Schickling), and I saw them pointing down the field,” Mastropietro said. “And I saw Olivia Pace down there, so I just kind of chucked it and hoped for the best. She got the ball, and it was crazy.”
The difference in emotions with a 6-4 margin as the teams’ retreated to the huddle was stark.
“We definitely had to regroup,” Lawton said. “We had to get our minds back in it. It was a bobble that we should’ve had, but they got lucky on it and we just needed to get back into it in the second half and forget about it.”
Lucky or not, the play encapsulated how the Springfield midfield contingent stepped up in miserably cold and damp conditions. Springfield has gotten accustomed to playing without dynamic midfielder Alyssa Long, who missed several weeks and then reinjured her hamstring barely a minute into Thursday’s second-round contest with Conestoga. Springfield held on for an 11-10 decision there, and was similarly tested by Downingtown East, which Springfield ousted from the PIAA semifinals last year.
The reward for Springfield (173) is a date with No. 3 Unionville in Tuesday’s semifinals. Unionville routed Downingtown West, 17-6, Saturday morning.
Mastropietro has assumed a larger two-way role, one of several players flourishing with increased responsibility. She scored and dished two assists, while Olivia Little notched a hat trick, led the Cougars with three draw controls and grabbed several crucial groundballs. Erin Gormley scored twice, the sophomore’s speed in eluding the East defense vital in sustaining four- and five-minute possessions in the second half.
“Defense is definitely, not more important than my offense but it’s definitely a big part,” Mastropietro said. “Because if we turn the ball over on offense, it helps a lot when our defense can close space and get the ball back right down on offense where we can score.”
Springfield benefitted from a stellar performance from Aidan Gallagher in goal, the sophomore making nine saves. She was particularly big early, with the Springfield attack slow to awaken. She made three stops in quick succession in the first 10 minutes, permitting Springfield just a 1-0 deficit by the time Gormley opened its scoring at 14:18 of the first.
“She played so good,” Temple commit Mastropietro said. “We wouldn’t have won without her. … After she makes a save and she holds it for a little and we’re able to cut to her and get the ball and get it out, it’s a big help.”
East had its moments, leading twice in the first half. Caroline Brennan scored twice and corralled five draw controls, and Lawton dished two assists. But they were constantly playing catchup after Pace’s marker.
Gormley stretched Springfield’s edge to 8-5, capping a four-and-ahalf-minute possession to start the second half. It took seven minutes for Brennan to answer, and Little soon replied after Ava Irwin (six saves) had denied her free-position effort.
Gallagher turned away Lawton and a Leah Hunter bounce shot before Emily Werzel, who minutes earlier had rung the post, finally got a breakthrough with 58 ticks left. But Lawton whistled high with Mastropietro altering her shot, and Springfield saw out the rest of a tense final minute.
“Just to get my stick out,” Mastropietro said. “I knew I couldn’t get my body there and close space on her completely, but I knew I had to get my stick and at least try to stop a shot.”
Downingtown East is in a familiar spot, having navigated playbacks last year for the sixth seed from District 1 and a westerly track in states. Lawton and company are equipped for the rigors of playbacks, which open Tuesday in a crosstown showdown with Downingtown West. Seven teams qualify, so East need only win one of its next two games.
“I think we should definitely go into playbacks feeling very confident,” Lawton, a University of North Carolina signee, said. “It’s the same thing; we just need to get our heads back into it.”
Springfield is also ready to tread a path it recognizes, this time with unfinished business to rectify on two fronts, falling in both the district and state finals a year ago.
“It feels great,” Gallagher said. “Especially after a close game (Thursday) and especially after making it so far last year, we really want to win it this year.”