This Saturday, the Seattle Prep Panthers travel to the Plateau to face off in the state semi final game against the Eastside Catholic Crusaders. This should be a battle between two good teams, and Prep…
The last time these two played, Prep dominated 16-4, although they won EC was missing a key player and top goal scorer attackmen Daniel Chang. With EC having Chang they should put up a strong fight.
Prep has some of the best players in Metro in Eliot Muska, who has a staggering 71 points this season and averages over 6 goals per game on the season. Callum Skillstead has also been a sharpshooter this season, tallying a healthy 44 points. Those two have been helped in the stat sheet by Ollie Sevilla (24 points) and freshman Brady Meehan (21 points). In addition to a productive attack, the Panthers efficiency on the ground has been instrumental to their success this season. Winn Chandler a whopping 70+ ground balls, Beckett Archer has grabbed 58, and Nat Menbrere (Drexel commit) has 27. Fortunately for Prep, Chandler and Beckett will be back next year to cap off successful high school careers before moving on to play Duke University and Princeton University, respectively. Prep’s goalie Shane Kelly has been great between the pipes this season, averaging 58% in goal out of 115 saves.
The Crusaders have been led in attack by sophomore Danny Chang, who’s had a great season so far, totaling 60 points this season, including multiple 10+ point games. In defense, senior captain Robby Shogren has been a defensive unit, with 8 points and 55 ground balls. Junior captain Jacob Dhal has 23 points and 35 groundballs. Freshman AJ Beveridge and senior Andrew Hembree have both been consistent contributors to the Crusaders’ attack, with 21 and 14 points respectively. on the year. Goalie Caleb Ellis helped keep the Crusaders in many games and had some great saves. Ellis boasts a 49% save rate with 71 saves on the season. Notably for this game, Crusader FOGO Conner Swedish will be out injured. The dynamic midfielder has piled up 55 ground balls in only 8 games.
The last time these two teams played, the Panthers walked away with a 16-4 win, and the Crusaders will be looking to even the score and book their spot in the state championship. The winner of this game will meet the winner of O’Dea-Bellarmine Prep.
