Ex-Scotia standout haunts Tartans

BURNT HILLS — Everything was normal for junior goalie Abbie McHerron as she worked her way through Monday’s postgame handshakes. Circling back after them, though, she stopped as Scotia-Glenville head coach Katelyn Nardini neared.

There was a joke or two, then a big hug.

“Good luck on Wednesday,” Nardini said as she let go of her former player, who then went to hug several Scotia players.

Abbie McHerron now stars for Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake after playing her first four varsity girls’ lacrosse seasons at Scotia and helping the Tartans to sectional titles in 2015 and 2016. Along with her family, she moved during the offseason into the Burnt Hills district, where her father, Jake McHerron, is in his ninth season coaching the Spartans girls’ lacrosse team.

That move was why Abbie McHerron spent a rainy Monday afternoon making eight saves as part of Burnt Hills’ 9-4 win against Scotia in the Section II Class C semifinals, a victory that sent her current team to Wednesday’s championship game against Albany Academy, and ended her old team’s season.

“This was definitely one of the hardest things I’ve ever done,” Abbie McHerron said of taking on her old friends. “This was never meant to be a slight to Scotia.”

Nardini said the Tartans get that.

“But we miss her. She was a huge asset for our team, but it doesn’t bother us she left,” Nardini said. “Things happen for a reason, and she came to play for them.”

Jake McHerron said his family had thought for years about moving into the Burnt Hills district, and finally made the move in an attempt to make things easier on the family, with son Ty McHerron also now in high school. The freshman is on the Spartans’ boys’ lacrosse team this spring.

“Life is too short,” Jake McHerron said. “Kids grow up too fast.”

Still, he said, nothing was easy for his daughter having to play against her former team and coach.

“Abbie loved playing for her, so this is bittersweet for her to come play for me,” Jake McHerron said, choking up, “but, at the same time, we still have all our friends there.”

The offense of Burnt Hills (No. 2, 9-7) made things relatively easy on Abbie McHerron in the second half Monday against Scotia (No. 3, 11-5). After the Tartans tied the game at 4 early in the second half, the Spartans strung together five goals to go ahead 9-4 with 13:11 left.

Burnt Hills junior Christina Pedone scored half of her game-high four goals to conclude the Spartans’ 5-0 finish.

“Once we got all the attackers in the same mode,” Pedone said, “we started scoring one after another.”

Junior Lauren Hopsicker added three goals and an assist for Burnt Hills, while Scotia juniors Alexis Zatlokowics and Lillian Murphy each paired a goal with an assist. Scotia sophomore Kaitlyn Wilson made nine saves in goal.

“We did really well from Day 1 to now,” Nardini said of her group, which featured only three seniors in 2017. “They improved so much. . . . They worked so hard for it.”

Burnt Hills failed to advance the past two seasons past the semifinal round. Only one current Spartans player — senior Taylor Safford — was on the program’s 2014 roster when it last won an area crown.

“We haven’t won the past two years,” Abbie McHerron said, “so we want to bring the title back to Burnt Hills.”

But Abbie McHerron did win Section II titles the past two years with the team she helped eliminate Monday. She said it was fun to play against her former team, but not something she had looked forward to doing.

“I’m just glad it turned out the way it did,” Abbie McHerron said.

Scotia 3 1 — 4 Burnt Hills 4 5 — 9

Scotia scoring: Lillian Murphy 1-1, Myah Hughes 1-0, Alexis Zatlokowics 1-1, Sydney Obman 1-0, Catherine Rumfelt 0-1. Burnt Hills scoring: Taylor Safford 1-1, Caroline Muller 1-1, Lauren Hopsicker 3-1, Christina Pedone 4-0, Sydney Plemenik 0-1.

Goalies: Scotia, Kaitlyn Wilson, 9 saves. Burnt Hills, Abbie McHerron, 8 saves.

Reach Gazette Sportswriter

Michael Kelly at 395-3109, mkelly@dailygazette.net or

@ByMichaelKelly on Twitter.