Fairfield dominates York Catholic for first district title
Playing in its first district championship match, Fairfield made the most of its opportunity by defeating YAIAA Division III rival York Catholic, 6-1, in the District 3 Class 1A championship match Wednesday night at Hershey Park Stadium.
York Catholic (14-7) fought valiantly to stay with the high-powered Knights, even cutting a two-goal halftime deficit to 2-1 when Eden Jahn scored on a header from Renee Bonner with 29:06 to play.
However, Fairfield squelched any chance of a comeback by recording a pair of goals 140 seconds apart just over two minutes after Jahn's marker.
Freshman Annabel Anderson bumped the edge to 3-1 off an assist from Sarah Heinbaugh on a shot from left to right with 26:58 remaining and freshman Nora Clarke was set up by Hannah Logue for a tally with 24:38 to go.
"We were getting a lot of shots on goal, so we didn't panic when they scored," Anderson said. "We kept playing the way that we were and we expected to score more."
York Catholic coach Joe Nattans said: "They're a very good team with a lot of firepower. We tried to stay with them for as long as we could, but we knew that we couldn't hold them down all game."
Logue and Emma Snyder capped the scoring with goals in the final seven minutes of the match.
"We all had some nerves coming into the game," Logue said. "It's a huge field here and a big stadium. But we calmed down and played our game."
Fairfield (21-1) scored the first goal of the match when Anderson headed a beautiful ball to the top shelf that was served to her by Maya Callenbach with 8:34 to play until halftime. Then Logue doubled the lead off an assist from Clarke at the 2:12 mark.
"It feels good to get this for the girls, they've worked their butts off to get here," Fairfield coach Phomma Phanhthy said. "I felt coming into the year that we could do this. We've got a very talented team that is very balanced, too."
The Knights are also going to the PIAA tournament for the first time and will face District 1 champion Christian Academy on Tuesday at a site and time to be determined. York Catholic also qualified for the state tournament and will face District 4 champion Warrior Run or Benton in a match to be played Thursday.
Nattans, who had been shown a yellow card early in the second half, was shown a second one with 18:20 left and thus sent off for the rest of the match.
"I felt that the safety of my player was in danger," Nattans said. "Whether the call was right or wrong, and I know that the officials are doing their best, I had to say something."
York Catholic _0_1 - _1
Fairfield _2_4 - _6
First Half - 1. Fair, Annabel Anderson (Maya Callenbach), 8:34; 2. Fair, Hannah Logue (Nora Clarke), 2:12.
Second Half - 3. YC - Eden Jahn (Renee Bonner), 29:06; 4. Fair, Anderson (Sarah Heinbaugh), 26:58; 5. Fair, Clarke (H. Logue), 24:38; 6. Fair, H. Logue, 6:27; 7. Fair, Emma Snyder, 5:04.
Shots on Goal - YC 3; Fair 10
Corners - YC 5; Fair 4
Goalies - YC, Amelia Strayer (4 saves); Fair, Ashley Roser (2 saves)