Wvw, Coughlin Seek 3a Crown, State Berth

By STEVE SEMBRAT [email protected]
Wednesday, October 31, 2001 Page: 6B

Coughlin has already brought its season to a very different ending than last
year.

Wyoming Valley West (13-1-2) would like to do the same tonight when they
take on the Crusaders (10-5) in a winner-take-all District 2 Class 3A
championship game.
The contest starts at 5 p.m. at Lackawanna County Stadium in Moosic.
Admission is $3 for adults and $2 for students.

To the victor goes the spoils: gold medals, a championship trophy and a
trip to the state playoffs. The winner plays the fifth-place team from
District 1 on Tuesday, Nov. 6 at a site close to home, probably King’s
College.

The loser doesn’t advance, which can be a traumatic experience.

It was just that for Valley West last season as a result of an overtime
loss to Delaware Valley in the final. Although the Spartans are in their
fourth consecutive Class 3A final, and have captured titles in 1998 and ’99,
they enter this game with the sense of having unfinished business.

“Nobody wants to feel the way we did last year, ending the season in such
an abrupt way,” Valley West halfback Jen Gimble said. “We want to go on
further in the states.”

While sudden death in playoffs is painful, it’s no less torturous than what
Coughlin went through last season. The Crusaders had talent, but no
togetherness. Their season disintegrated, ending with them missing the
playoffs.

“Last year was a bad year,” Coughlin senior Amanda Jez said. “We knew we
could do this from the start of the season. This year, we’re a team, we play
like a team.”

The Crusaders believed in themselves from day one, even if they weren’t
considered a title contender.

“We wanted it from the beginning,” Coughlin senior Megan Ford said. “We
practiced as if we were going to get there. The last couple of games, we’ve
turned it up. Everybody here wants it.”

The Crusaders haven’t won a district title in more than two decades. The
last time Coughlin played for a championship was in 1997, when the current
seniors were in eighth grade. Most of them will be playing in a championship
game for the first time.

“It’s going to make us play hard,” Coughlin senior Sarah Newton said of
the atmosphere of the championship game. “It’s really exciting with the
lights and the turf. It makes you feel really special.”

And even better if you win.

“We don’t want to stop at districts,” Gimble said. “That’s what we’ve
worked at accomplishing throughout the season.”