The Emmaus High School boys lacrosse team missed one of its annual goals of qualifying for the Eastern Pennsylvania Conference tournament this year. But that will not deter the Green Hornets from finishing off another one of their goals when they attempt to defend their District 11 Class 3A title in next week’s district tournament.

There was a period in the last two weeks of the regular season where Emmaus controlled its own destiny and needed to win to secure a spot in the EPC playoffs. But in a week span from April 22-28, the Green Hornets lost all three of their conference games to Freedom, Central Catholic and Easton, three of the four teams that made EPCs. Emmaus fell into a tie with Freedom for the fourth spot, but the Patriots won the tiebreaker.

“It was disappointing missing out on EPCs,” said head coach Stu Speicher. “I know that we have the team that could’ve competed for that title, but we fell a little short. I’m proud of the team and how they have handled this season’s challenges. Hopefully, we’re playing our best lacrosse as the district playoffs begin.”

The Green Hornets, however, did finish off the regular season on a high note, taking down rival Parkland following a victory over Northwestern and then Moravian Academy in their final three games. They finished the year 13-6 overall and 6-3 in the EPC.

“The conference continued to improve this year as we faced strong competition from a number of our EPC opponents,” Speicher said. “But we competed in every game and I’m proud of the way we finished off the season, giving us some momentum moving forward.”

Now Emmaus will have about a week to prepare and get ready to bounce back and defend its district championship. Speicher knows what he wants his team to work on in preparation.

“Our biggest priority is getting healthy and then we will be able to shift our focus to potential district tournament opponents,” said Speicher. “It’s always exciting once a single-elimination tournament begins. I’m hopeful that we’ll be able to continue Emmaus’ tradition playing our best when the pressure is at its peak.”