Henry’s overtime goal gives Shady Side title
As soon as Shady Side Academy won the draw to open overtime against Mt. Lebanon, the Bulldogs immediately called timeout to set up a play.
It didn’t quite go as planned.
“The set we drew up didn’t go as planned,” Shady Side Academy coach Cam Thompson said. “But our guys are pretty high IQ lacrosse players. They’ve done a really good job of buying in to what we teach them and sharing the ball and it was a perfect example at the end.”
A little luck doesn’t hurt either.
Junior attacker J.P. Henry whipped a blind backward shot that slipped over the shoulder of Mt. Lebanon (14-70) goalkeeper Samuel Myers 1:01 into overtime to give No. 2 Shady Side Academy (16-5-0) a 12-11 victory over the topseeded Blue Devils in the WPIAL Class 3A boys lacrosse championship game at Robert Morris University’s Joe Walton Stadium.
“[Shady Side Academy attacker] Ethan Salvia had the ball fall off his stick and [Mt. Lebanon’s] Alex Tecza, who is a phenomenal player, juggled the ball a bit and it fell to the ground,” Henry said. “Before I even knew it, I picked up the ball and my initial instinct was to throw it behind the back and I was lucky enough that it went in.”
Shady Side Academy had not won a WPIAL Class 3A title since 2014. That year, the No. 2 Bulldogs also beat topseeded Mt. Lebanon in the
final.
“It was so meaningful to bring this back eight years later and to also do it against our archrival,” Henry said. “It just makes it that much more special when you beat your rival.”
Salvia and Mac Mohn each scored four goals for Shady Side Academy in a match that featured five ties and five lead changes. Jack McCann and Miles Halter each had three goals for the Blue Devils.
But in the end, it all came down to the draw to begin the overtime, something Mt. Lebanon is all too familiar with. The Blue Devils benefited from an overtime faceoff win in their semifinal victory over Peters Township.
“It’s a fickle mistress … and it’stough,” Mt. Lebanon coach Mike Ermer said. “Everything in lacrosse is earned. It’s not like they didn’t score so you get the ball. They got us on
that one. I thought we battled real hard all night and they got us.”
Mt. Lebanon trailed, 7-4, after Mohn scored with 4:28 remaining in the first half, but Halter gave the Blue Devils a shot in the arm heading into the intermission on a goal with 30 seconds remaining in the second quarter.
That goal began a 4-0 run for Mt. Lebanon that propelled the team into an 8-7 lead on a McCan goal with 7:08 left in the third quarter. From there, they went back and forth until Mohn scored with 1:06 remaining in regulation to send it to overtime.
“We battled at the X all night long. We knew they had some big, strong athletes that were going to be a test for us,” Thompson said. “It’s a testament to our guys for standing their ground and battling it out.”