Mount St. Joseph Academy scored seven goals in each of its first three games in the PIAA District 1 field hockey playoffs. Last Saturday in the championship game of the Class 2A tournament, the Magic’s offensive well ran dry.

Seeded third in the 16-team playoff bracket, the Mounties created numerous offensive opportunities in the finals at Methacton High School, but were unable to find the backboard. Fourth-ranked Kennett High School scored the game’s only goal with 5:33 remaining in the fourth quarter to capture the district title.

Leaving the district tourney and looking forward to States, the Mount had an overall record of 15-7. The Magic finished second within the Athletic Association of Catholic Academies, losing only to 2025 champion Villa Maria in a home/away series to compile a record of 7-2.

At Methacton last Saturday, Villa played in the Class 3A finals that followed the Mount-Kennett contest. The top-seeded Hurricanes delivered a 6-0 drubbing to the fellow finalists from the host school, the Methacton Warriors.

Mount St. Joe attacked early in the 2A final, and two minutes in, a shot by senior Alexa Durand thumped off the leg pad of Kennett goalie Charlotte Mack. Near the middle of the first quarter, one of the MSJ starters was given a green card. Kennett’s Blue Demons summoned superior numbers on a rush up the field, earning a penalty corner that did not produce a shot.

A little later, the Demons drove the ball inside from above the circle, but it was kicked away by the Magic’s junior goalie, Kathryn Pedicino. In the final minute Mount junior Caitlin Paul dribbled the ball all the way down the right wing, and after a centering pass one of the Kennett defenders was able to clear the ball away.

Despite being handed another green card in the second quarter, the Mounties controlled play much of the time. Still, a lot of offensive pressure and some near misses did not knock the zero off of the Mount’s side of the scoreboard, and the half ended with no goals in the books.

It seemed as though the Kennett players got a good talking to at halftime, because the Blue Demons appeared more determined and aggressive after the intermission.

Although the Magic were awarded the first penalty corner of the new half, two for Kennett followed soon after. On the second, Pedicino made a save at the left post for the Magic. A little later, one of the Demons got loose on a solo breakaway up the middle of the field, but Pedicino made a well-timed charge out of the cage to foil the attack.

On a corner play for the Mount, a shot lifted from the right of the goal was deflected over the cage by a defender’s stick. There were two more Mount St. Joe corners right at the end of the period; Kennett’s Mack made a save on the first one, and there was no shot on the second sequence.

Pedicino saved the first Blue Demon shot of the fourth quarter, and an attempt at the other end by the Magic ended with the ball traveling just outside of the right post.

There were several corners for the Mount around the middle of the period. Junior Julia McGlynn tapped the ball toward the goal from close range but Mack stopped it, and then the Kennett keeper got a leg pad on a drive from farther out. There was no Mountie in position to get a stick on the loose ball on the rebound.

Back on offense, the Blue Demons took the ball down to the right endline and crossed it inside, where junior Margo Schwarz was waiting at the far post to jam the ball into the cage. The final score was on the board with five-and-a-half minutes left to play.

At the other end, the Mount made an assault from the right flank, but a shot ended up on the wrong side of the near post. The Magic called time-out with 2:49 remaining, but they could not secure the tying goal when they returned to the field.

The Mounties’ path to the district finals had led them past 14th-seeded Marple Newtown (7-0), sixth-ranked Oxford (7-1), and number seven Unionville (7-0). For their first-round game in the state tournament, the Magic will face the second seed out of District 12, Delaware Country’s Cardinal O’Hara High School.