Pennsylvania 3A Semifinals: Recaps and Standouts

Below are quick recaps of the PIAA 3A state tournament semifinal games as well as a review of two prospects from each of these high-level contests who impressed us.    Radnor defeats Garnet Valley, 10-9 in OT   Filled with scoring streaks, this was an intense and entertaining game between Central League rivals. Garnet jumped out to a 5-2 lead thanks to a dominating first-quarter performance from face-off specialist and recent Towson commit Kai Lopez. Early on Garnet also received a couple of eye-popping goals from future Drexel Dragon Luke Mingioni and a lights-out performance in net from Drew Keaveney. A late second-quarter goal by Villanova commit Kessler Cox, his third goal of the first half, pulled Radnor within 5-3 right before halftime.   Cox's tally began a stretch where Radnor scored seven of the next eight goals in this semifinal. Williams College commit Tucker Graham opened the third quarter scoring for Radnor. Then uncommitted 2024 Owen Smith rang the bell with a low-to-low rip for Radnor. Drexel signee Owen Knight added three goals during this span. When this run ended, Radnor led 9-6 with just over four minutes remaining in the game. It appeared Radnor would punch their ticket to Penn State.   That's when Garnet Valley staged a furious comeback, scoring three goals in a mere 27 seconds of game action. Mingioni found the back on the net twice to cut Radnor's lead to 9-8. Then 2026 prospect Ethan Potochar tied the game at 9-9. The flurry of goals by the Jaguars was an epic momentum swing.   Both teams had solid chances to take the lead in the closing minutes of regulation and could not finish. Overtime brought a host of scoring opportunities for both sides as the extra session could best be described as chaotic. Still, neither team could find the back of the net.   Radnor gained possession in the final minute of OT and called time out. Coming out of the Radnor timeout, UPenn commit Nate Lucchesi patiently initiated from behind the net. As he worked his way to GLE, Lucchesi moved the ball to Knight on the wing, who proceeded to fire an absolute laser to the low, far corner for the win.   This will be Radnor's fourth straight trip to the 3A title game.    How this standout 2024 remains uncommitted is a mystery to me. He was an absolute brick wall for most of this contest. Keaveeny continually turned away point-blank scoring chances for Radnor. He was credited with 19 saves in this semifinal, but it looked and felt like that total should have been significantly higher. One Radnor offensive player told me, “When you are looking to shoot, it seems like he takes up the entire net.” Keaveney is a legitimate 6'4” and has a large wingspan and long legs. Plus, he possesses insanely quick reflexes as well as a knack for kick saves. Thus, it's easy to see how opposing offensive players would have that impression of him. After the regular season, Keaveney was a 1st Team All-Central League selection.     How this standout 2024 remains uncommitted is a mystery to me. He was an absolute brick wall for most of this contest. Keaveny continually turned away point-blank scoring chances for Radnor. He was credited with 19 saves in this semifinal, but it looked and felt like that total should have been significantly higher. One Radnor offensive player told me, “When you are looking to shoot, it seems like he takes up the entire net.” Keaveney is a legitimate 6'4”, has a large wingspan and long legs. Plus, he possesses insanely quick reflexes as well as a knack for kick saves. Thus, it easy to see how opposing offensive players would have that impression of him. After the regular season, Keaveney was a 1st Team All-Central League selection.     If there is a quicker change of direction attackman in Pennsylvania, we have not seen him. Knight's ability to cut on a dime and then cut back again is unique. His low center of gravity and ability to protect his stick make it impossible for defenders to cause turnovers on him. When he is not scoring, Knight can work as a timely and precise distributor especially when he is at X. As a bonus, to all these offensive skills, Knight's speed and tenacity enable him to gobble up ground balls. He registered four goals in Radnor's victory, including the game-winner with 47 seconds remaining in overtime.    LaSalle downs Springfield, 7-3   Stop me if you have heard this one before…All-American face off man Stevie Davis was the key to LaSalle's victory. The University of Pennsylvania commit secured possession for La Salle all night and poured in three goals. To be honest, Davis' success at the dot allowed the Explores to seize control of this game early and never relinquish it. Offensively, Davis got support from future Penn Quaker Paul van Bastelaar, who posted two goals and one assist.   On the back end, La Salle's decorated defensive group of All-American Matt Wills (Penn), Harvard signee Andrew Van Stone, and Cornell commit Logan Missett held Springfield without a goal for over 30 minutes of game time. Highly-touted 2026 LSM [player_tooltip player_id='42674' first='Cooper' last='Heilig'] and goalie Matt Nelson were outstanding too.   Springfield trailed 5-1 in the early fourth quarter before Marist commit Conner Aughe and midfielder [player_tooltip player_id='20475' first='Luke' last='Valerio'] each found the back of the net less than a minute apart. However, 5-3 was as close as the Cougars would get. La Salle's defense rediscovered its footing, and Nelson made two astonishing saves to end Springfield's hopes at a comeback. One of the shots Nelson turned back in clutch time came from just outside the crease off the stick of Springfield's highly acclaimed lefty attackman [player_tooltip player_id='20026' first='Brad' last='Barber'].   After that flurry, LaSalle went down the other end, and uncommitted lefty midfielder [player_tooltip player_id='18399' first='Mike' last='Rossi'] provided the dagger goal for the Explorers with four minutes remaining in the game.   This will be LaSalle's first trip to the 3A title contest since 2019.    From the opening face-off, it was clear that the quick, skilled, and technically precise Davis was a man on a mission. That mission was to return La Salle to the 3A state championship game for the first time in four years. His dominance at the face-off dot pushed LaSalle to a 5-1 lead. When Springfield cut that lead to 5-3, Davis restored order by securing possession for La Salle, allowing the Explorers to add goals and wind the clock. Davis was 8-of-13 overall on the night and had three goals. Simply put, he is a cheat code and the most dominant face-off prospect in the area. His physicality and tenacity are off the charts. When you combine those assets with his ability to score with either hand as well as absorb punishment on the run, you get a unique face-off prospect. We expect Davis to have an immediate impact at Penn next year.     Nelson was credited with eight saves, so it was not an especially busy day for the St. John's commit. However, he came up clutch for La Salle in the late fourth quarter to slam the door on Springfield's comeback attempt. With under four minutes to play, Nelson denied two close-range, high-percentage scoring opportunities for Springfield. Nelson's ability to rapidly move post-to-post or high to low while remaining under control is impressive. He possesses excellent technique and plays with composure. Nelson is a uniquely patient netminder who will not be fooled by the basic head and shot fakes. As a bonus to his ability to keep the ball out of the cage, Nelson executes precise clearing passes.

Below are quick recaps of the PIAA 3A state tournament semifinal games as well as a review of two prospects from each of these high-level contests who impressed us.