Varner's goal sparks C.B. West rally past MSJ
Three defenders stood in front of Lucy Varner, and the Central Bucks West right midfielder was out of position.
Three defenders stood in front of Lucy Varner, and the Central Bucks West right midfielder was out of position.
She belonged on the right side; the ball was on the left.
But the sophomore Varner, who quadrupled her varsity playing time in C.B. West's 4-3 win over visiting Mount St. Joseph on Friday, heard her teammate Anna Hall direct her.
"Lucy, take it."
So Varner did. She swerved around each defender and she swung her stick as the goalie darted out a second too late, and she sent her teammates into a frenzy.
Varner's first goal of the season changed everything. It tied the score at two goals apiece early in the second half after third-seeded C.B. West trailed by two late in the first half of the District 1 Class AAA field hockey quarterfinal.
As she jogged to the sideline after the stunning goal, Varner's teammates swarmed her.
She was hugged and they fawned over her moves.
"Where did that come from?" a coach called out to the new hero, still incredulous.
A minute and 59 seconds later, C.B. West drew a penalty stroke, and Bryn Boylan converted, putting her team up, 3-2.
Later still, Varner drew the corner that would lead to the Bucks' winning goal.
It was all traced back to Varner's game-changing marker, a slice-and-dice of No. 11 Mount St. Joseph's once-stifling defense.
"It just inspired our team," C.B. West coach Courtney Lepping said. "It lifted the team, it changed the momentum of the game. It was such a huge goal. For a girl who is just getting her first opportunity, it was huge."
With the sun firmly set, the final buzzer rang out and the Bucks remained undefeated.
The C.B. West girls, outfitted in white shirts with gold numbers, surrounded their coach as parents readied their cameras.
"This green Gatorade goes to Lucy Varner," Lepping declared, handing the award to an appreciative Varner, whose teammates cheered raucously in agreement.
The night was hers, a tide turned on a dime by a girl playing out of position.
Camera shutters clicked and Lucy Varner clutched her green Gatorade and smiled.
Mount St. Joseph 2 1 - 3
C.B. West 1 3 - 4
Goals: MSJ-Taylor Mason 1, Lucy Varner 1, Bryn Boylan 1, Ryan Murray 1.
CBW - Natalie McNamara 2, Grace Wallis 1.
Saves: MSJ-Allison McMullen 13; CBW-Courtney Westover 14.