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Doyle calls his shot as Irish clinch share


When York Catholic head coach Shane Harper called a timeout in overtime Tuesday night, his attacker Eli Doyle came to him and said, 'Coach, I'm not missing again.'

And he got it. Doyle had missed a potential game-winner moments earlier at the end of regulation and now, in overtime, he wanted a second chance.

After the timeout, Doyle emerged from behind the Central York net, drove to the right and went to his favorite move: An inside roll. The ball deflected off a stick into the net and seconds later Doyle was being mobbed by his Irish teammates as he leaped and sprinted his way down the sideline.

"It works 75 percent of the time," Doyle joked of his 'go-to' move. "I just did what I did all game."

"He can do it," Harper added of his mindset when Doyle got the ball. "He's under-the-radar the best attacker in the league. No one even knows he's there. We show up to games and they're like, 'Who's No. 5?' We give him the ball and we know he can do it."

Doyle's overtime heroics not only gave York Catholic a 14-13 win over Central — its first overtime win since 2010 — it also clinched a share of the YAIAA regular-season title for the first time in program history.

"Just have to get better every time, learn from my mistakes and go in and make the play," Doyle said. "Thank God, what a relief...We were tired of losing in overtime. It's the worst feeling. So this time was different. We had energy and we were playing well all game."

Tuesday's overtime win offered a sense of vindication for the Irish, who had lost their last seven overtime games.

"We just have to win these games," Harper said. "And now we won. I think there's no stopping us in the playoffs right now."

If Tuesday was a preview of a potential playoff matchup between the Irish and Panthers, then lacrosse fans should be pleased. Both teams went back and forth with big runs and countered each other after every big play. Central, led by Gavin George's five-goal performance, erased three- and four-goal deficits three times, including in the fourth when T.J. Ross tied the game late in the fourth with back-to-back goals. Both goaltenders stood tall with Central's Sam Prowell stopping 17 shots and York Catholic's Alex Reichart countering with 14.

"By far (one of the best YAIAA games of the season)," Harper said. "Two great teams going at it. You can't ask for more than that. I look at these kids and what do I say? I just sit back and watch. These kids on both sides are playing at such a high level."

It was a big day for all of York Catholic lacrosse. Just before the boys' team clinched a share of the regular season title, the girls' team finished an 11-0 league slate to clinch their first-ever regular season title as well.

"It's nice to have two good teams at York Catholic," Harper said with a smile. "The boys catch heck every day at the games and at practices, so it's nice to have two good teams at York Catholic now."