We've hit the halfway point of lacrosse season, and the races in both the boys and girls standings are as close as ever.
Four teams remain undefeated in YAIAA matchups thus far. Another four sit only a half game back in their respective standings. At any point, one loss could up end the race for first and restructure the top half of the rankings.
That's not to mention the fleet of impressive performances from this year's group of underclassmen. It isn't just sophomores showing up, but a cadre of freshman making an immediate impact in the league. Young talent is always going to pop up around the league. It's the nature of high school sports, after all. But it's worth drawing to attention the sheer number of freshmen that have made an impact in their debut seasons.
Here's this week's Monday Morning Coming Down:
Freshman standouts
There's already been a fleet of returning players making their mark this season in lacrosse, but what can't go unrecognized is the handful of freshmen also making a considerable impact this year across the girls teams. Amelia Burkey from York Catholic, New Oxford's Delanie Stonesifer and Spring Grove's Molly Bryan have all made a significant impact one way or another.
Burkey and Stonesifer are first and second on their respective teams for goals per game with 4.4 and 3.3 goals per game. Stonesifer is second only to junior Camryn Cohee for the Colonials, but she leads the team in ground balls and caused turnovers through her six games played.
Burkey's team-high in goals per game is backed up by her 2.4 assists per game, and she's second on the team for draw controls behind senior Anna Seufert. Bryan, although not leading the Rockets in scoring, still ranks third among her teammates in goals per game. She does however lead the team in ground balls and draw controls.
Those on the boys' side aren't shy about making an impact, either. Dallastown, for one, has a pair of freshmen standouts in Curry Cantabene and Ian Hoffnagle. Cantabene is third on the team in goals with 13, behind senior Logan Ungerland and junior Connor Farrell, while Hoffnagle is tied for third.
Playing kingmaker
The standings in both boys and girls lacrosse haven't settled at all yet. Both standings have two teams with undefeated league records fighting for control of first − ...
