HS NOTEBOOK: Lackawanna Trail field hockey plays at national tournament; Playoff races heating up as regular seasons wind down

Sep. 25—Lackawanna Trail had the opportunity to play in the Max Field Hockey National High School Invitational, which had 63 teams from 12 different states competing over a rainy weekend at the Proving Grounds complex in Conshohocken.

On Sunday, the Lady Lions faced Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake, New York, and lost a tight game, 3-2.

Lena Ryon scored both goals and Lauren Fahey had an assist for Lackawanna Trail. Payton Laytos and Keira Mulhern each made four saves.

Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake, which is the third-ranked team in New York by MaxPreps.com, entered the tournament with an undefeated record. The Spartans defeated Leonardtown, Maryland, 4-2, on Friday in a matchup between undefeated teams.

The Lady Lions were scheduled to play The Hun School from New Jersey on Saturday, but that match got canceled when The Hun School could not attend.

Lackawanna Trail (3-1-2) has a challenging week ahead. The Lady Lions are at Wallenpaupack on Monday, home against Wyoming Area on Wednesday, and home against Honesdale on Friday.

Abington Heights' Madison Zalewski had a big week by scoring seven goals and adding an assist. The senior, who is headed to Old Dominion University, has 18 goals and five assists this season and needs five to reach 50 in her career.

Peyton Pallman had three goals and two assists, and Marygrace Sabatini had two goals and six assists, as the Lady Comets are 7-0-1 in the District 2 Class 2A power ratings. They trail Crestwood (5-1-1).

This week, Abington Heights plays home against Nanticoke Area (4-5) on Tuesday and home against Berwick (2-5) on Thursday.

Honesdale, which earned a 2-1 win over Lake-Lehman last week, leads the District 2 Class 3A power ratings with a 6-0-1 record. The Lady Hornets are home against Wyoming Seminary (2-4-1) on Wednesday ahead of a rematch at Lackawanna Trail (3-1-2) on Friday. In their first matchup, Honesdale and Lackawanna Trail tied 3-3.

Jillian Tait leads Wallenpaupack with 10 goals this season. The Lady Buckhorns have won three of their last four matches to even their record at 4-4.

Tennis

The final week of the regular season is ahead, and Scranton Prep is the lone undefeated team remaining in the Lackawanna League.

On Saturday, Scranton Prep lost 3-2 to The Lawrenceville School in New Jersey. Alyssa Wigley defeated Katelyn Ni, 6-3, 6-2, and Emma Cuck beat Sienna Kulynych, 6-2, 6-3.

Last week, the Classics earned a 5-0 win over Abington Heights to seize control of the Lackawanna League. All three starting singles players — Wigley, Lily Lengyel, and Cuck — are undefeated in the regular season, and none have lost even a set. The team can secure a second straight championship by going 3-0 this week. Scranton Prep hosts North Pocono on Monday and Holy Cross on Wednesday before finishing the season at Mid Valley on Thursday.

Scranton Prep, the defending champion, is locked in a tight battle for the No. 1 seed for the District 2 Class 2A team tournament. Wyoming Seminary (12-0, 787) and the Classics (12-1, .752) and are first and second in the power rating standings, respectively.

Wyoming Seminary ends its Wyoming Valley Conference season at MMI Prep on Tuesday.

After Scranton Prep, North Pocono is the only other Lackawanna League team in position to reach the eight-team Class 2A tournament. The Lady Trojans (8-4) have clinched a spot with only two matches remaining. The field of qualifiers includes the top eight teams and any team with a record of.500 or better.

Montrose can climb into the top eight based on its power rating. The Lady Meteors (6-9, .454) finish with a match at Western Wayne (0-11) and home against Mid Valley (2-9). Ahead of the final week of play, Tunkhannock (6-7, .473) holds the No. 8 seed and has completed its regular season.

In Class 3A, Abington Heights, which is the defending champion, is the No. 1 seed. The Lady Comets (12-1, .731) led Wallenpaupack (10-2, .677) and Valley View (10-2, .670).

Delaware Valley (8-3), West Scranton (8-4) and Scranton (6-6) have also qualified for the tournament.

Volleyball

West Scranton became the latest first-year program to win its first official varsity match last week.

The Lady Invaders (1-8, overall) defeated Valley View in a five-set match, 3-2, and improved its record to 1-8 overall. West Scranton is one of four new teams in the Lackawanna League, which includes Valley View, Mid Valley, and Scranton. Lakeland also has a team that will enter the Lackawanna League next season.

Scranton (4-7, .405) has won four out of their last seven matches and moved into fifth place in the District 2-4 Class 4A power rating standings. All six teams in Class 4A qualify for the postseason according to the format released by District 2 volleyball chair Maureen Williams. The tournament starts with quarterfinals on Oct. 23; semifinals on Oct. 26; and finals on Nov. 1.

Blue Ridge remained undefeated in the Lackawanna League, and the team celebrated a milestone last week. Emma Button, a junior, recorded the 500th dig of her career in a win over Susquehanna. She has 138 digs this season.

The Lady Raiders (8-1, .739) have a comfortable lead over Lackawanna Trail (5-4, .542) in the District 2 Class 1A power rating standings. Quarterfinal matches for the District 2 tournament start on Oct. 23; semifinals on Oct. 26; and finals on Nov. 1.

Holy Redeemer (8-2, .680) and Western Wayne (7-2, .679) are in a tight battle for the top seed in the District 2 Class 2A power rating standings. Holy Redeemer's losses this season are to District 3 powers Berks Catholic and Delone Catholic.

The top eight teams and any with a better than .500 record qualify for the postseason. If there are any first-round matches necessary, they will be held on October 23. Quarterfinals are set for Oct. 24; semifinals for Oct. 30; and finals for Nov. 2.

Berwick (9-0, .767) leads the Wyoming Valley Conference and the District 2 Class 3A power rating standings. Holy Redeemer plays at Berwick on Tuesday in the marquee match of the regular season in the WVC.

North Pocono (8-1, .714) is ranked second behind Berwick in Class 3A.

The Class 3A tournament will start with first-round matches, if necessary, on Oct. 23. Quarterfinals, Oct. 25; Semifinals, Oct. 30; Final, Nov. 2.

Contact the writer: jbfawcett@timesshamrock.com; 570-348-9125; @sportsTT on Twitter