If there’s a word for the Palisades field hockey team, that word is unity.
The senior-heavy Pirates have been together for a long time.
“Some of us have been together since fourth grade, while others came in at seventh grade,” Palisades senior Julianne Kallenbach said. “Our varsity team is very tight-knit. We have a lot of team unity and I think that’s a great asset for us because we have that connection that not a lot of other teams have. We have individual talent, but we’re able to put it together and put it to good use. We have a lot of senior leaders who all step up and we actually work together with that leadership.”
Last Thursday, on Senior Recognition Night, the Pirates battled to a 1-1 tie with Saucon Valley in a Colonial League contest.
It was the third tie of the season for Palisades, which previously played Salisbury Township to a 2-2 tie and had a scoreless deadlock with Bangor.
Palisades honored seniors Ashley Amato, Dahlia Greenberg, Hailey Stevens, Lucia Brunton-Dardaris, Brianna Huber, Kallenbach, Angelia Rafalko, Camilia O’Donnell, Riley Haubert, Abby Rider, Rory Sayre and goaltender Alycia DeNato.
The Pirates put up an early 1-0 lead, capitalizing on their first penalty corner of the evening. Haubert scored with an assist from Rafalko with 1:07 to go in the first period.
Palisades almost made the lead stick, fending off the Panthers and dominating play, earning a total of 10 corners in regulation and holding Saucon Valley to six.
But it was one too many, as the Panthers converted on a corner with just 1:54 remaining in the game to force the overtime.
“We had the lead for so long, so letting them score with so little time left was very frustrating, but we still had hope and we fought hard,” Rafalko said. “I think that’s part of our unity, that we just keep working together, even when we’re down.
“I can see us going to districts and doing well if we can get the goals in. We’re a very fast team and we have amazing stick work. We just need to get those goals in. We’ve gotten so much better from the beginning of the year. I’m really so proud of us.”
Palisades got the better of overtime play, taking three shots on goal and getting three corners while not allowing Saucon Valley so much as a sniff at a goal.
But the Pirates could not net the winner, and the game ended in a tie. DeNato made six saves in goal.
“Everything about this game and every thing about this team is beautiful,” O’Donnell said. “We were just playing so hard. Our passes were incredible and we never gave up. We didn’t win, but I’m very proud of our effort.
“We dominated, especially in the overtime. We just couldn’t put it in the net.”
The Pirates finished off the regular season with a non-league loss to Quakertown, 2-0, on Friday and lost 4-2 to Palmerton in a league finale on Tuesday. They are 6-8-3 overall, 4-7-3 in the Colonial League South Division.
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