Pennsylvania: Lacrosse to Crown True State Champion

There was always something incomplete each spring when lacrosse season ended in Pennsylvania. That’s because there was no state-wide tournament, just regional playoffs that determined champions in pockets of the state.

That will all change this year with an outright state champion in boys’ and girls’ lacrosse in the first-ever PIAA (Pennsylvania’s state high school governing body) state tournament. The one key difference is that the state champion will be what you can call a true state champion, since the state playoffs will not include enrollment classifications, as other sports do (such as Class 4A, 3A or 2A).

Not enough schools in Pennsylvania play lacrosse, but that could change – and change fast – thanks to the introduction of a state tournament.

Right now, there’s no better area in Pennsylvania for lacrosse than in the Southeastern corner of the state. And those teams and coaches can’t wait for the state playoffs to begin.

The area is so dominant that in past years, the winner of District 1 was considered the state champion.

“I think that it is a positive for the sport of girls lacrosse,” Springfield girls coach Keith Broome said. “I think that it will generate excitement and help grow the sport across the state. The only negative is that District 1 is so strong that only seven teams out of the sixteen will get invited, leaving out some very good teams from our region.”

District 12, which includes the Philadelphia Catholic League and powerhouse teams like the LaSalle boys program and the Archbishop Carroll girls program, will also be a factor in determining which teams could be playing in June.

Carroll coach Lorraine Beers, whose team entered this season with one of the most amazing winning streaks in the state by winning 107 consecutive Catholic League games, said a state playoff couldn’t come soon enough.

“Once every Pennsylvania school has lax, there will be classifications just like in basketball,” Beers said. “But no, I would not like it to continue as it was. That was wrong to call only the District 1 winner the state champs. What about Western Pennsylvania all those years? Again what was PIAA thinking? There should have been an open system without districts.”

If there is a dominant league in the state, a league that could produce the inaugural state champions in boys and girls lacrosse, that’s the Central League. It’s a league that on the girls’ side has Radnor, a national-caliber team that finished 23-0 last season and would have probably won the state tournament—if there was one. The Red Raiders are just as powerful this season.

“It is going to be hard in the beginning for the Philly area teams, as we will most likely play ourselves all over again (in the state playoffs), but in the long run it will be good for the growth of the sport in Pennsylvania, which is long overdue,” Radnor coach Phyllis Kilgour said. “I think when they see the level of our lacrosse down here, it will challenge them to strive for it. And it won't take long. We used to dominate the field hockey world, but no longer.”

Two teams that could go deep on the boys’ side from the Central League are nationally-rated Conestoga and local powerhouse Springfield, two teams that are 9-0 and could both still be undefeated when they meet next Tuesday, April 21.

Cornell-bound Mike Bronzino is expected to lead Conestoga deep into the state playoffs.

Photo By Kim Campbell / Conestoga Lacrosse

“I agree the toughest teams in the state are in this area, and the concern is getting to the states,” said Conestoga coach Brian Samson, whose team has already beaten stud programs like LaSalle, Downingtown East, Haverford School and Emmaus. “To get there, you have to beat everyone any way, but there is a chance you’ll run into teams you’ve seen before. The kids are starting to get a larger sense of what they could be playing for. Especially our team, because of the early-season success we’ve had. This team wants to continue to get better, they’re focused.”

The twist is that the Pioneers may have to go through Springfield, which if this was another sport would compete in the Class AA tournament, while Conestoga, considered a large school, would play in Class AAA.

“I think the state playoffs are a great thing; the playoffs will be long and it’s eight games and a long haul, and you get to see teams from all over,” said Cougars’ coach Mike Friel, whose team has beaten Ridgewood (N.J.) and Comsewogue (N.Y.) and a owns 5-4 victory last year over Conestoga. “This will be a true state championship. In the past, we’d play a Keystone Cup championship against a team from the Pittsburgh area, which an eastern team has won every year since it began on 2001.

“The kids know the state playoffs will be a long haul, and if you win the Central League, you’ll get a top seed in the state. There is a good possibility that Radnor, Conestoga, Springfield, and Downingtown East, someone from Southeastern Pennsylvania has a strong possibility that they should be in the state championship.”

Joseph Santoliquito covers high school sports for the Philadelphia Daily News and is a frequent contributor to MaxPreps.com.