History suggests that the Selinsgrove hockey team may well advance to the PIAA Class AA quarterfinals, perhaps even to the state semifinals. The question is, can they reach that elusive state championship game?
The seal-of-consistency Seals are now in their eighth consecutive state tournament. At 20-1 -- with the only loss coming on the road against District 11 powerhouse Lehighton -- these Seals are on par with some of the great Selinsgrove teams of the past eight years, including the 2006 and '07 teams that went unbeaten until losing their first -- and only -- games during the state tournament.
Selinsgrove, the five-time defending District 4 Class AA champion, will take on District 11 runner-up Southern Lehigh today at Bucknell's Graham Field at 5 p.m. in a PIAA first-round game.
To be honest, states haven't been kind to the Seals. In those seven previous state appearances, Selinsgrove reached the state quarterfinals four times before falling. In two of those years (2002 and 2004), Selinsgrove lost in the first round. And in 2006 -- the first of the Seals' two consecutive undefeated regular seasons -- Selinsgrove reached the Class AA semifinals before losing to Wyoming Seminary 3-1, which went on to win the state title that year.
Last year, Selinsgrove knocked off Lehighton 3-2 in double overtime in the first round before falling to District 1 runner-up Christopher Dock 1-0 in the semis. This season Selinsgrove was again the class of District 4, rolling through the regular season and the D-4 tournament without a loss. How do the Seals' chances this time around compare to previous seasons?
The question was posed to Selinsgrove coach Cathy Keiser, who was understandably reluctant to look beyond today's matchup against the Spartans -- who lost to Lehighton, the only team to defeat the Seals, 5-0 in Saturday's D-11 final -- a game Selinsgrove assistant Roz Camp was able to scout. Still, Keiser offered an interesting perspective on this year's squad compared with those of the recent past.
"I think (this year's team) is right there with them. We're really strong down the middle and in the midfield, and they support each other so well," Keiser said. "We've had (similar talent) in the past, but talent is never enough. These girls support each other on and off the field. We feel we have the motivation and teamwork to get there.
"I just have a good feeling about this year."
And there is reason for that good feeling, the primary one being balance. The Seals don't have a Morgan Fleetwood, the program's all-time leading scorer, who graduated in 2007 and is now plying her trade at Indiana of the Big Ten. There's no Danica Deckard, now seeing playing time as a freshman at Ohio State. Instead, there's a group of seven or eight players -- ranging from forwards to midfielders to backs -- who can put the ball in the cage. If you concentrate too much on one or two, you run the risk of leaving open seven or eight.
"(The scoring) is very balanced. They really don't care about who finishes," Keiser said. "They're more concerned about setting it up."
And that might be the key. The Seals still play their full-field, high-octane game at top speed, as they have since they began playing on the artificial turf at Harold L. Bolig Memorial Field in 2004. But more options produce more opportunities, and these Seals are full of options.
No one is looking past Southern Lehigh today. As Keiser noted, "Once you get to states, all the teams are good."
But asked if the Seals would relish a rematch against Lehighton -- which would happen only in the state final -- Keiser was emphatic.
"Why wouldn't we? It was a 1-0 game, and we didn't play our best that day," she said. "We'd be thrilled to see them again."
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