Wyoming Area’s Eila McKernan congratulated by Juliana Gonzales and Lyla Rehill comes in to also congratulate McKernan after score the third goal in the first half of play with Wyomissing in the first round of PIAA Class A playoffs.
Fred Adams | For Times Leader
Wyoming Area’s Eila McKernan on a scoring drive to the goal as Wyomissing’s Bailey Loeb tries to defend in the first round of PIAA Class A playoffs Monday at Lake Lehman Stadium.
Fred Adams | For Times Leader
Wyomissing goalie Mallory King tries to kick the ball away from Wyoming Area’s Juliana Gonzales and Wyomissing defender Bailey King helps to gain control of the ball in the opening round of the PIAA State playoffs Monday at Lake Lehman Stadium.
Fred Adams | For Times Leader
Wyoming Area’s Lucia Campenni gets congratulated by Juliana Gonzales moments after she scored the second goal in the second quarter against Wyomissing in the first round of PIAA Class A playoffs.
Fred Adams | For Times Leader
Wyoming Area’s Layla Rehill moves the ball against Wyomissing in the first quarter of the opening round of the PIAA State Playoffs held at Lake Lehman Stadium.
Fred Adams | For Times Leader
LEHMAN TWP. — Wyoming Area’s entry into the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association state Class A field hockey tournament was a chaotic one, the result of the team’s biggest comeback of the season and an overtime goal.
Once there, however, the Lady Warriors were in command throughout their first-round game.
Wyoming Area held Wyomissing without a shot or penalty corner Tuesday night while rolling through the opening round with a 4-0 victory at Lake-Lehman’s Edward Edwards Stadium.
It was the third time this season that the combination of work at midfield and defense had prevented the opponent from getting either a shot on goal or a penalty corner. In all, Wyoming Area had six games where its goalies did not need to make a save to record a shutout and four games in which they did not yield a penalty corner.
Wyoming Area cruised to the victory behind two goals by Lyla Rehill and one each from Ella McKernan and Lucia Campenni.
“I think we looked great,” McKernan said. “We’ve just got to keep it up and not let ourselves slow down.”
McKernan’s goal gave Wyoming Area a 3-0 halftime lead.
Rehill, who has 37 goals and 18 assists in 20 games, scored the game’s first and last goals.
Campenni made it 2-0 with 11:38 left in the half. Jules Gonzales first tried to score on the rebound of an Ella Campenni shot, but when the rebound came back to her, she found Lucia Campenni all alone at the left post.
McKernan’s goal came at the end of a high-speed, 50-yard charge up the middle, dribbling as she weaved around defenders. As goalie Mallory King tried to make the stop, McKernan got off a shot while lunging to her right for the three-goal lead with 1:36 left in the half.
“That’s something I’ve been working on, controlling the ball and not losing it,” McKernan said.
Rehill capped the scoring with 1:01 left in the third. Wyoming Area had Wyomissing pinned deep in its own end when Rehill stole a clearing pass on the right wing. She maintained her dribbled spun into the circle and ripped a hard shot with a reverse stick from nearly 15 yards out, low into the far corner.
“I feel like we’ve been playing pretty well with each other,” Rehill said. “We’ve been connecting well and putting some balls in the cage.”
Wyoming Area took 18 shots, 12 of which were on goal, and took 12 penalty corners.
