Owen McCabe (above) and Lower Merion have only lost once all season. (Photo: Josh Verlin/CoBL)
By Josh Verlin and Owen McCue
Boys: 1) Lower Merion vs. 14) Garnet Valley (7 PM)
For Gregg Downer’s top-seeded Aces, the District 1 playoffs have been more like the Central League Playoffs, Part Two.
Before beating Chester in the district semifinals on Tuesday, Lower Merion had to go through two familiar faces in Conestoga and Springfield (Delco.), beating ‘Stoga for the third time this season and Springfield for the second. Now it’s matchup No. 3 against Garnet Valley, yet another Central League opponent, the Aces beating the Jags in both their regular-season meetings.
It’s the first time since the Central League was founded in 1967 that two of its members will meet for a District 1 title.
“Well, it’s a nice feather in the cap for the Central League, to get two teams to the finals […] it’s a good moment for our league,” Downer said on a Friday phone call. “Truthfully, we’re a little tired of playing league opponents; we would like ideally to play some fresh faces, hopefully we’ll get some fresh faces in the state tournament, but beating a team like Garnet Valley three times is not an easy task.”
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