Blazers’ standout senior puts a bow on state semi win over Fleetwood

HERSHEY – After four years and countless games in three sports, I’ve completely run out of superlatives to describe Lancaster Mennonite’s Katelyn Vanderhoff.

The Blazers’ senior standout has hit a gazillion big shots, made a boatload of key passes and scored a gaggle of huge goals in her unforgettable career on the field hockey field, the basketball court and the soccer pitch.

Vanderhoff was up to her old tricks once again on Tuesday, scoring a pair of goals on the big stage in Mennonite’s 3-0 win over Fleetwood in a PIAA Double-A state girls’ soccer semifinal game in Hersheypark Stadium.

One year after beating Fleetwood in the state-championship game, the Blazers knocked off their postseason rivals in the PIAA semifinals this time around, and advanced to Friday’s state title game opposite L-L League foe Donegal.

Vanderhoff, who earned a basketball scholarship to the University of Maine, and who finished her career as Mennonite’s all-time leading scorer in basketball, led the L-L League in goals and total points during the regular season this spring.

And she’s kept up that pace during the postseason, including Tuesday, when she shredded Fleetwood’s D for a pair of goals.

I chatted with Ms. Vanderhoff after the game about how the Blazers were able to eliminate Fleetwood for the second year in a row, about scoring two goals in a state semifinal game, about Mennonite’s D, which did a superb job bottling up Fleetwood’s ace goal-scorer, Steph Barnett, and about getting a chance to defend their state title on Friday.

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