York College women's lacrosse holds off Stevenson for MAC Commonwealth title

For most programs in Division III women's college lacrosse, reaching the NCAA Tournament is a lofty goal each year. For York College, it’s more of an expectation.

That’s what made Saturday afternoon’s MAC Commonwealth title contest between the Spartans and Stevenson so critical. The York College women had struggled early in the season against an incredibly challenging schedule, which almost certainly meant the Spartans needed to win the conference championship to secure their NCAA bid. They won all seven MACC games in the regular season, then downed Widener in the semifinals to run their winning streak to nine straight.

While top-seeded York had defeated Stevenson by 10 goals in the regular season, the Spartans quickly found out they weren't about to run roughshod over the Maryland-based Mustangs for a second time. On a cool and rainy afternoon at Kinsley Field, the York offense had trouble getting into high gear and scored just eight times.

But a stout effort defensively, mixed with some great goaltending from Bella Garabo, the Spartans earned their NCAA invite after all. They held on for a nailbiting 8-7 triumph, holding off Stevenson to claim their third consecutive MAC Commonwealth title.

York (13-6) will learn its placement in the national tournament Monday morning when the brackets are officially unveiled at 10:30 a.m.

“Everything is different when it comes down to a championship game,” York senior Madison Kurland said. “The rain was a factor for sure, but I think that (Stevenson) made some good plays on defense and their goalie did make so great saves as well.”

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Former York Catholic standout Sydney Mentzer provided half of York’s offensive output. The sophomore scored all four of her goals in the first half as the Spartans built up a 6-3 lead by the break. Zoe Kluegel scored a pair while Gianna Huet and Krista Yarusso rounded out the goal scoring for the Spartans. Garabo added nine saves in goal.

The Mustangs held York scoreless over the final 22-plus minutes behind the terrific play of goalie Anna Johnson. Johnson made 15 saves for the day, repeatedly turning away the York attack in the final period.

Fortunately, the Spartans had a similar wall in front of their net in Garabo, who was named the MAC Commonwealth Championship MVP for a second year in a row.

“Bella is just insane back there,” said Kurland, a Central York alum. “She saved us many times before and she just continues to do so.”

After Johnson made a save with under 30 seconds left in regulation, the Mustangs took possession with a chance to force overtime. A timeout with 22 seconds left allowed the Stevenson offense to set up for a potential game-tying goal. After a couple of passes, Stevenson senior Kara Yarusso — the older sister of York College's Krista Yarusso — circled from the left of the cage towards the top of crease before launching a shot that Garabo netted with under 10 seconds left.

After looking at the clock, the York netminder realized she did not have to surrender the ball because time would expire. The celebration was on. As the final buzzer sounded, Garabo heaved both the ball and her stick into the air as her teammates quickly surrounded her in jubilation.

“There is not going to be a game where a team like (Stevenson) is not going to have any runs,” Garabo said. “We knew they were going to make a run, but we held through. Those last 22 seconds were very nerve-racking, but we practice those types of situations all the time and that showed today.”

The Spartans will enter NCAAs on a 10-game winning streak after starting 3-6 against one of the most arduous schedules in Division III. Five of their six setbacks came against teams ranked in the top 10 nationally at the time, and five of six were by four goals or fewer. Now, a year removed from a trip to the NCAA quarterfinals, York is ready for another swing at the nation's best.