(Photo by Bill Allen/NJ SportAction) COURTLY MANNER: Princeton Day School girls’ hockey senior star Courtland Lackey, right, battles for the puck last weekend in action at the annual PDS Invitational Tournament. On Sunday, Lackey scored three goals to help PDS rally from a three-goal deficit for a 7-6 win over Princeton High in the tournament’s consolation game. The Panthers, now 3-1, host Pingry on December 17 in their final action before the holiday break.

Lackey Blossoming for PDS Girls’ Ice Hockey, Tallies 3 Goals as Panthers Top PHS in Tourney

Bill Alden

When Courtland Lackey took up ice hockey in 2006 as a freshman at the Princeton Day School, she had trouble keeping on her feet.

“I looked like a bear on ice,” recalled a smiling Lackey, whose main sport is soccer which she has been playing since she was four years old.

“I was falling everywhere; it was awful. I worked on my skating and Kat [PDS head coach Kat Smithson] helped me out. Sometimes we had morning workouts. I kept working at it and once you get skating down, the rest comes.”

Last Sunday, Lackey showed the fruits of that labor as the Panthers battled crosstown rival Princeton High in the consolation game of the annual PDS Invitational Tournament.

With the game knotted at 4-4 in the third period, Lackey stole the puck at center ice and raced in to score on a breakaway. Minutes later, she added another tally to help PDS earn a 7-6 triumph.

In reflecting on her scintillating tie-breaking score, Lackey acknowledged that she nearly fell in her rush to the goal.

“I was really nervous; I was like ‘please don’t miss, please don’t miss,’” said Lackey, who ended up with a hat trick on the day.

“I was scared I was going to shoot high and over the goalie. I actually tripped and then I popped it up at the last minute.”

In the early going, it looked like PDS was going to be tripped up by its crosstown rivals as the Panthers fell behind 4-1 midway through the first period.

But after having dropped a 1-0 nailbiter to Lansdale Catholic on Saturday in the first round of the tournament, Lackey and her teammates wanted to make the home fans happy.

“Yesterday was a heartbreaker so we knew that we needed to dig deep; we outshot them 48-8 so we needed to win today and focus on scoring,” said Lackey, who also scored PDS’s first goal of the game.

“When the first period hit and we were down 4-1, we were like this isn’t going to happen again. We are not going to lose in our own tournament and be in last place. We just really fought hard.”

As a veteran, Lackey was ready to show some leadership to help the Panthers dig out of that hole.

“I am a lot more patient; last year I was always in a frenzy with the puck, looking to pass it away, throw it away, or ice it,” said Lackey.

“Now being a senior, I feel I have to be a leader and try to keep my composure and make plays as opposed to just freaking out.”

PDS head coach Smithson was impressed by the composure her players showed collectively as they shook off their sluggish start and rallied for the victory.

“Once we kind of snapped out of it, we did a fantastic job coming back and doing it goal by goal,” said Smithson, whose team improved to 3-1 with the win.

“We were looking at a small picture and taking baby steps to where we needed to go. They recognized the situation we were in and they were able to pull themselves out of it. I couldn’t be more proud of them.”

Smithson is proud of how Lackey has blossomed on the ice. “Courtland has developed as a player so much from last year to this year,” asserted Smithson, who also got two goals from Stephanie Sydlo in the win over PHS and one apiece from Megan Ofner and Leeza Cole.

“Not only has she developed her stick skills but her mental game; she is really on top of everything. She works on her shooting every day in practice and it is really showing. She is a lot more confident. Last year, she wouldn’t go to net. I had to like almost hit her over the head and say what does it take to make you go to the net. This year, she can’t stay away from it. Her game has made a huge transition.”

Senior captain and defenseman Savannah Hecker gives the Panthers a lot of confidence with her play on the blue line.

“Savannah is definitely a rock back there for us; she provides a lot of consistency and leadership,” said Smithson, whose team hosts the Pingry School on December 17 in its final action before the holiday break.

“Most importantly, she is extremely vocal which is really important especially since we have a new goaltender [sophomore Lucy Marquez] back there. She has stepped up big time.”

Smithson also likes the way Ofner and Sydlo are stepping up this season.

“We have Megan Ofner who we use at every position; she is an incredibly versatile player and that is exactly what we need,” added Smithson.

“She can play offense, defense, and wing. She is all over the place. Stephanie doesn’t necessarily want to score all the goals, she wants to know how she can assist the players. She has definitely developed into a goal scorer. She is an extremely hard worker. We have a lot of players contributing.”

The Panther players are developing some tight bonds with all hands on deck.

“We are carrying a much smaller squad and the camaraderie among the team is much closer,” said Smithson.

“The girls are touching the puck a lot more in practice; that’s making a huge difference. I think they have recognized the opportunity that we have with this squad. They are really digging hard, not only in practice but in the games. They are really taking the challenge every game.”

Lackey, for her part, was proud of how the Panthers met the challenge last weekend.

“We have really stepped up,” said Lackey. “We have a lot of people returning. We are kind of young but the same essential team. We just all came together for the tournament.”

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