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When the topic is field hockey in the Colonial Valley Conference it’s a fact that Allentown and Princeton will be mentioned as two of the programs with the most success.
Both are highly-respected teams and this season both have only added to the reverence they have earned.
The two are set to tangle one more time on Saturday on the turf at Ewing High in the CVC championship game set for 12 p.m.
Top-seeded Allentown (11-6-1), the defending champion, reached the final with an impressive win over No. 4 Notre Dame, while No. 3 Princeton advanced with an upset of No. 2 seed Princeton Day.
The Redbirds claimed a 4-3 win back in the season opener.
“It feels amazing to be going back to the finals,’’ said Allentown’s Ella Sluder, who had a hat trick in the semifinal win and two goals in the season-opening win over the Tigers. “It was really intense last year.’’
The elation coming from Princeton (10-4) is because last year was an unusual off year and now it has bounced back to reach the final.
“We are super excited,’’ said Princeton coach Heather Serverson. “Especially after last season and it’s so exciting to be back in the final game.’’
The Redbirds put on a clinic of precision passing, blinding speed and solid defense in the ND game. The Tigers showed their grit when PDS challenged them in the second half.
“It’s going to be really important for us to stay steady and composed,’’ said Allentown coach Kayla Peterson. “Saturday will be a competitive game as any final would be but we’re just looking to build off Wednesday’s win.’’
Sluder is the CVC’s leading scorer with 26 goals and 11 assists and has seven multiple goal games this season.
Avery Gower has 13 goals and eight assists, Natalie Levine has 10 goals, Marleigh White has caged seven, Kelsey Loughlin has five goals and Addison Gingras has five goals and seven assists.
Anna Simonds, who went over 100 saves for the season in the semifinal, has a goals against average of 2.53.
“It’s so much fun to bring a team that I played for and to be able to go to the finals two times,’’ said Peterson. “It feels really good and it shows all the hard work they have been putting in. We have a strong senior class and I happy they have this opportunity.’’
The Tigers are led by Sara-Cate Walker with 15 goals and nine assists, Heidi Johnson has nine goals, Cassie Farran, who had two goals in the semifinal win, and Charlotte Flanagan has four goals and three assists and they will be looking to limit the Redbirds’ opportunities.
“We had a very close game the first time we played Allentown this season so we can’t waste a single scoring opportunity,’’ said Serverson. “It’s going to come down to the team that makes the fewest mistakes. Just like the semis, we need to stick to our Princeton game while being ready to adapt to any variable thrown our way.’’
Both teams have risen the level of play throughout the season and will be looking to find the next gear.
“I know we can elevate our play even more so we’ll be working on ways to improve the next few days in practice and we’re looking to finally put all the pieces together,’’ said Peterson. “We want to finish the strongest we’ve been.’’
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