Ella Horner understands that nothing is easy at this point.

Horner scored two first-period goals and later added an assist as Emmaus defeated Garnet Valley 5-0 in the first round of the PIAA Class 3A field hockey tournament Tuesday night at Memorial Field.

The Green Hornets (25-1), who will face Avon Grove in Saturday’s quarterfinal round at a site and time to be determined, advanced to the state quarterfinals for the 25th consecutive season.

Even though Emmaus sometimes makes it look that way, nothing is easy, according to Horner.

“We learned to work through everything and fight,” she said. “[The District 11 championship] was a tough game, but these are all tough games now. That’s the level that we have to play to every time. We have to stay humble because we have more games.”

Starting fast is always a priority, especially in the state tournament and especially against a team that has given the best teams in District 1 some problems. Garnet Valley (16-8) lost by only 1-0 in the District 1 fifth-place game.

“It feels really good to start off states with two goals, but it all comes from the team,” Horner said. “They worked really hard in practice. It feels good to have that win.”

Horner’s goals were her 15th and 16th of the season. Sharlise Solano and Addison Povilaitis made it 4-0 at halftime. Gracie Huffer tacked on an insurance fifth goal in the third quarter.

“The girls did a great job of getting the ball into the circle and taking a multitude of shots,” Emmaus coach Sue Butz-Stavin said. “Their goalkeeper [Maggie Hilden, a Stevens commit] made a multitude of saves (17), but we found some pockets and put it away.”

Emily Romano and Aiko Price combined for the shutout, having to make only two saves.

Horner said that keeping the intensity and momentum, even while pulling away from an opponent, is challenging in all situations.

“It’s always difficult to keep that high level, especially playing against tough girls, but our team did a really good job today,” she said. “Everyone, the coaches – we all worked together.”

The Jaguars were playing in only their third state tournament in program history.

“It’s a game of goals. When you come out, you want to score first,” Garnet Valley coach Michaela DelSordo said. “It builds your momentum. So when that doesn’t happen, we need to hit the reset button. When we’re down, we split the game up, five minutes at a time. We reset every five minutes. Historically, we’ve been a second-half team, and that reflected in today’s game. Had we come out a little bit stronger, it would have been a different outcome today.”

Garnet Valley 0 0 0 0 — 0

Emmaus 2 2 1 0 — 5

Garnet Valley shots: 2. Penalty corners: 5. Saves: Maggie Hilden 17.Emmaus goals: Ella Horner 2, Sharlise Solano, Addison Povilaitis, Gracie Huffer. Assists: Madi Lenig, Horner, Morgann Orobono. Shots: 22. Penalty corners: 15. Saves: Emily Romano 1, Aiko Price 1.

Tim Shoemaker is a freelance writer.

https://www.mcall.com/2025/11/04/piaa-class-3a-field-hockey-emmaus-blanks-garnet-valley/