Girls lacrosse: West Chester Henderson holds off Avon Grove to reach state semifinals

WEST GOSHEN - To play a fellow Ches-Mont League team is always special, to do it in a PIAA 6A quarterfinal makes it even more so.

The West Chester Henderson and Avon Grove girls lacrosse teams put on a show Saturday afternoon at West Chester East Harold Zimmerman Stadium. The Warriors jumped out quickly and looked like they were set to cruise their way into a semifinal berth, but the offense, so potent earlier in the game, sputtered, and the Red Devils staged a spirited comeback attempt.

Despite going scoreless in the fourth quarter, Henderson held off Avon Grove for a thrilling 9-8 victory to move one victory from its first state final appearance. The Warriors (22-1) will face the third place team from District 1, Springfield (Delco) in the semifinals on Tuesday at a time and place to be determined.

"I think it's great," said Schalleur on playing a fellow Ches-Mont League team. "The Ches-Mont is really strong and I'm glad it's growing, and I've got to play a few of my (club) teammates on the other side, so that was fun. Every single game gets harder and harder, but we love the competition."

"This league is so good," added Avon Grove coach Chris Schuch. "The league is what prepared us for the opportunity to be here. To get through the Ches-Mont League prepares us for these moments."

The Warriors found themselves on the front foot early. With a little under five minutes gone by in the opening quarter, Schalleur was driving across the field from left to right when her defender fell down and with open space. she fired a shot past goalie Kylee Mellott to put Henderson up, 1-0.

A minute later, Ava Fanelli cut in front from the back of the net to score from the right of Mellott for a 2-0 advantage.

Reese Heim tallied on a free position, shaking off a stick check from a defender to make it 3-0 with 4:50 left.

"We can tell by our warmup how a game is going to go," said Schalleur. "Our warmup was straight focus. We were all dialed in and I think it showed in our start."

The Red Devils got on the board off the ensuing draw as Kendal Mellott weaved her way through the Henderson defense to score from in close.

Henderson ended the first as Lyla Raffaele scored after getting a pass from Heim on a 2-on-1 following a turnover. The Warriors had a 4-1 lead, but it could have been worse as they hit two posts and Kylee Mellott made three saves.

Schalleur registered her second on a free position to make it 5-1. Rylee Boyd brought one back on a free position to make it 5-2. Rayne Harkins and Mary Cate Killoran tallied before the half for a seemingly comfortable 7-2 lead.

Schalleur nabbed her third goal of the contest to make it 9-2 early in the third. Henderson was cruising, but they suddenly hit the brakes as that would be the last goal they would score.Avon Grove began the rally when Boyd made an acrobatic catch to score. Following a Henderson turnover - one of four they had in the quarter, Maggie Dunckel cut the deficit to 9-4. AG still had work to do, but the belief was starting to permeate throughout the bench.

"I think when we had one of those timeouts, we just looked at each other and said play for each other," said Boyd. "What made this season special is these group of girls. We play for each other and love each other as friends. We say we're sisters."

Dunckel started the fourth by scoring on a free position slice the lead to 9-5 with 9:45 left. Boyd scored with the net open to close the gap to 9-6.

"We've had really good teams on the ropes a couple of times," said Schuch. "We'dug ourselves a little too big of a hole. But, the fight was awesome. It turned to be a great game. They're a fantastic team. Henderson is awesome."

Then Boyd helped get them closer on a hustle play as she hit the stick of Rongaus and the ball was picked off by Dunckel, who fired it into the open net and it was 9-7 with 7:09 to go.

"I have teammates I can trust and they trust me, so being able to make moments like that in big games is special," Boyd said.

As time was winding down, one last gasp came on an Emily Bullen goal with 38 seconds left.

However, Heim won the draw and the time ran out on the Cinderella Red Devils.

"It was a fun season," added Boyd. "Being that seed (the fourth place team in District 1) and showing that we can be anywhere and we can bring ourselves to the top shows how much grit we have. And I think that showed in that second half."

Now, a rematch awaits the Warriors. They edged the Cougars, 6-5 in the District 1 semifinals back on May 21.

"We're so excited," said Schalleur. "We all have been waiting for this one for so long. All of our energy and all our focus is on winning. We're excited to play Springfield.

"We know their certain strengths and I think we can adapt and fight hard and I think we can win."

West Chester Henderson 9, Avon Grove 8

Avon Grove 1 1 2 4 - 8

WC Henderson 4 3 2 0 - 9

Avon Grove goals: Ke. Mellott, Boyd 4, Dunckel 3, Bullen.

WC Henderson goals: Schalleur 3, Fanelli, Heim, Raffaele, Harkins, Killoran 2.

Goalie saves: Ky. Mellott (AG) 5; Rongaus (WCH) 6.

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This story was originally published June 8, 2026 at 6:53 AM.