Teams That Impressed At Philly Fall High School Challenge

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Below is a review of three teams that grabbed our attention at last weekend's Philly Fall High School Challenge.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Perkiomen School (Pennsylvania)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Perkiomen's School's 3-0 record at the Philly Fall HS Challenge included a solid 9-8 win over the Hill School. Last Saturday the Panthers played with extreme pace as well as with a ton of energy and attitude. &nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Perkiomen School's talented midfield group was dominant at this event. Offensive midfielders Liam Finkel (Yale commit) and [player_tooltip player_id='135013' first='Trent' last='Tremblay'] (2028) got downhill in a flash and created for themselves or teammates. Both of the talented prospects are 6-foot-4 and 200-pounds. Their combination of size and polished stick skills presented serious match-up issues for opponents.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Perkiomen School's winning ways also featured a pair of ball-hawk LSMs. Syracuse commit Owen James had a major two-way impact for Perkiomen School. James was a menacing on-ball presence who flew all around the field, caused turnovers and then led the transition break. His ability to cause a turnover while running full speed on a ball carrier's hip was impressive. Athletic and speedy pole Gavin Rossello (Towson commit) was remarkable too. The versatile Rosello caused havoc on the perimeter as an LSM. He also dropped down and played close defense at an elite level. &nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Goalie [player_tooltip player_id='171354' first='Briggs' last='Jamison'] (2028) and midfielder Easton Messina (Drexel commit) were major contributors for Perkiomen School too.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Notre Dame (New Jersey)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>On their way to a 3-0 record at the Philly Fall HS Challenge, The Fighting Irish displayed a well-balanced lineup. Their 11-5 win over annual Pennsylvania 2A state title contender Marple Newtown caught everyone's attention.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>On offense Notre Dame received tremendous efforts from their senior attack duo of Emanuel Jastrzebski (Rutgers commit) and Merritt Long. Jastrzebski owns polished stick skills and shined as both a goal scorer and feeder. Long was a fantastic off-ball operator. His high IQ cuts, drifts and sweeps produced numerous finishes in close.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Fellow attackmen Roman Klish (Colby College commit) and Alexander White (2027) also turned heads. Midfielder Caden Federigo (Stevens commit) impressed with his two-way skills. Face-off specialist Kenny Romano (Rollins commit) repeatedly secured possession at the face off dot and allowed Notre Dame to play downhill all day.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>At the other end of the field, SSDM Luke Spearnock (DeSales commit) was a gritty on-ball presence as he frequently got into ball carriers early in their dodge. Spearnock's speed and nose for the ball enabled him to snag a host of GBs. The play of close defenseman Jay Benjamin popped too. Benjamin's on-ball defense was outstanding. On other possessions, Benjamin disrupted passing lanes with his stick. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>St. Joseph's Prep (Pennsylvania)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>St. Joe's graduated a slew of talented prospects from its 2025 roster, so most lax heads were expecting a rebuild in 2026. However, their impressive play (2-0-1) at the Philly HS Challenge showed the Hawks are ahead of schedule and could be force in southeastern Pennsylvania this coming spring.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Last Saturday, face off specialist [player_tooltip player_id='141686' first='Mason' last='Proctor'] was an absolute force. Proctor's clean wins were followed by explosive runs into the offensive end. His dominating play at the dot created a significant time of possession advantage for SJP.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Once SJP was on offense, attackman Dominic Flynn went to work. The Quinnipiac commit used his quick burst and filthy stick skills to find the back of the net often. &nbsp;Fellow attackmen Chris Bryan (2028) and Nick Laber (2027) also supplied a solid offensive punch. Midfielder Tom Duffy impressed with his ability to get down the alley in a hurry and then run through checks on his way to the net. &nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>SJP's defensive efforts were anchored by close defender [player_tooltip player_id='20469' first='Chase' last='Carle'] (Manhattan commit) and stock rising goalie [player_tooltip player_id='171496' first='Matthew' last='Corrado'] (2028). The 6-foot-6 Carle displayed polished foot work as he pursued ball carriers all over the field. His size and enormous wingspan created serious problems for opposing offensive players. Corrado proved to be a poised net minder with fast hands. His clean saves combined with his quick and smartly placed outlet passes generated a number of transition opportunities for SJP. &nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->