4 squads seek Pa. field hockey title

Four District 1 field hockey teams, three of them in Class AA, have their eyes on berths in their respective PIAA championship games on Saturday, but only three of them can possibly make it.

The district is assured of at least one team in the state Class AA championship game, at the Zephyr Sports Complex at Whitehall High, near Allentown. That's because Christopher Dock and Merion Mercy, the second and third seeds, respectively, from the district, will meet at 4 p.m. today at Wissahickon in a state semifinal.

Villa Maria Academy, the district champion, will try to join the winner of the Dock-Merion game in the noon title game by beating Wyoming Seminary in the other semifinal, at 6 p.m. today at Emmaus.

Central Bucks South (20-3-1), the lone District 1 Class AAA survivor, meets Hershey in a semifinal at 5:30 p.m. today at Gov. Mifflin High in Shillington. In the other Class AAA semifinal, at Gov. Mifflin, Central Dauphin meets Penn Manor at 3:30. The state Class AAA title game takes place at 2 p.m. at the Zephyr complex.

The Golden Bears (17-6-1) and Pioneers (16-5-1) have never made it to the state championship game. Merion made its first appearance in the state playoffs last year, losing to Oley Valley on a penalty stroke in the opening round. It avenged the loss by beating the District 3 champion, 3-2, in the first round this year.

"I know it's the biggest game of my career," Merion senior Allison Moran said of today's date with Dock.

"It's been like a dream," junior teammate Kiera Zambon said when asked about the Golden Bears' season. Zambon has been on a scoring tear with four goals in her team's two state playoff wins. She had one of the goals in the win over Oley Valley.

Villa (22-1-1), which won two state titles in the early 1990s, will be trying to avenge its only loss when it meets Wyoming Seminary, the District 2 champion. The Blue Knights scored a 4-1 win over the Hurricanes in the first game of the season.

Central Bucks South, the runner-up to Neshaminy in the District 1 playoffs, made the state playoffs for the first time in the school's four-year history.