Emmaus rallies in the second half to advance to state quarterfinal
Emmaus hit a minor speed bump Tuesday going into the halftime huddle tied 1-1 with Methacton in a PIAA Class 3A first-round game.
Like the Green Hornets usually do, they learned from it, got re-focused and re-energized, and went on to a 4-1 over the Warriors.
“You have highs and lows in any game,” Emmaus coach Sue Butz-Stavin said. “We happened to give up a goal on a penalty corner because our defense got caught up doing a no-no.
“But after that, the kids came together, and we were able to capitalize on some great goals. It’s a fight we have on the team. Sometimes you have to overcome adversity and sometimes you have to light your fire a little bit.
“Overall, we’re playing good hockey and overcoming hurdles that are thrown against us.”
Next up for the Hornets is a matchup with another group of Hornets, Honesdale, in a PIAA Class 3A quarterfinal. Game time Saturday is 4:30 p.m. at East Stroudsburg South High School.
“I knew this season our defense needed to grow,” Butz-Stavin said. “We’re still growing. When we make mistakes, we learn from them, and we don’t repeat them. Our offense has been very good. We have to continue to work hard at that. We’ll take it from there.”
Emmaus (24-0) has outscored its opponents 204-12 with 17 shutouts. The program not only has won the last 23 consecutive District 11 championships, but the team rarely stops at merely qualifying for the state tournament. The Hornets have advanced to the quarterfinals for 22 straight seasons and have played in the state semis in every season since 2010.
The team’s current win streak is 68 games, with two of those coming in state title games, Emmaus’s 13th and 14th state gold medals.
Of course, Butz-Stavin knows that none of that — not even an 11-0 Emmaus win over Honesdale in this round two years ago — matters when the whistle blows at 4:30 p.m. Saturday. At that point, the score will be 0-0.
“It’s a new year, a new season,” she said. “We know we have to take one game at a time, do the simple things well and don’t get tired of doing them.”
Emmaus has gotten production and leadership from its three senior leaders — midfielder Abby Burnett (U. of Michigan commit), midfielder-forward Rachel Herbine (Iowa) and forward Ava Zerfass (Monmouth) — but also from a strong junior class. Goalkeeper Emma Cari (William and Mary) has 17 shutouts and forward/mid
Melea Weber (North Carolina) has 35 goals and 34 assists.
Juniors Autumn Held and Jordyn Poll have played well in the back, while Haley Kvacky and Sarah Schaffer have been flexible midfielders. Sophomore Autumn Kernechel and freshman Morgann Orobono have also contributed as starters.
Normally, the game would be played on a Saturday morning, but Honesdale is dealing with a tragedy in its community.
The Honesdale players lost a friend early Sunday when Samson Fluck, a 16-year-old sophomore, died following a brief illness. His funeral is Saturday morning. After
this, the Honesdale players will change clothes, get on a bus, and head down Route 402 toward East Stroudsburg for the game with Emmaus.
“Right now, I think the kids are in shock,” Honesdale coach Becca Maciejewski. said. “They seem kind of lost. It’s very quiet in the hallways in school. We’ve been taking a lot of time to take the temperature of the group. We have a handful of players on the team who were very close with Samson. This really hit home with our team.”
Honesdale, which has been playing field hockey for 34 seasons and has made the states only twice, had a dramatic 4-3 win over Spring-Ford in the first round. Honesdale rallied from a 3-1 deficit and scored the winning goal as time expired with Flluck on their minds.
The Honesdale players plan to wear T-shirts with Fluck’s name and number 20 for the balance of their season.
“Samson was an athlete — a football player and a baseball player,” Maciejewski said. “He was a fighter. He would be here in the stands, cheering you on. When it did get tough, there was something else that we could pull from. A little bit of magic from a terrible situation.”