Defense in peak form for Franklin Regional girls soccer

By: Bill Beckner Jr.
Saturday, October 7, 2023 | 11:01 AM

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While the math doesn’t seem to add up, defensive play equates to one-sided play.

Through 11 games, Franklin Regional had scored just 20 goals, one of the lowest totals among teams with winning records in WPIAL Class 3A.

But on the other side, the Panthers had surrendered just eight goals (that includes an outlier of three against Thomas Jefferson).

They had only surrendered three scores in section play, which was a key reason they were in sole possession of third place in Section 3 with the second half of section play in full swing.

The word “smothers” was used in a recent headline to descibe a Franklin Regional win.

“We’re going to defend for 80 minutes,” coach Scott Arnold said. “Our back line makes it hard on teams.”

The Panthers had six shutouts, including a pair of 1-0 finals over Penn-Trafford. They dropped a 1-0 decision to Plum, and fell to Latrobe, 2-1.

Plum and Latrobe are also considered two of the top teams in the classification.

The Panthers were set to play those teams back-to-back on Oct. 9 and 11 in a key stretch (home against Latrobe and at Plum).

While moving junior Abby Paterline from the midfield to the top of the formation has bolstered the offense, Franklin Regional has one of the top goalkeepers in the state in senior Aris Lamanna.

Few netminders have a voice in the action like Lamanna, a Coastal Carolina commit.

Watch a game and you’ll see the 5-foot-11 Lamanna come all the way to hear midfield when the ball is on the other end of the field.

She even takes lengthy free kicks for the Panthers.

“You don’t see many do what she can do back there,” Arnold said. “She reads the game. She is amazing that way to see what is going on ahead of her.

“She is like a quarterback when we are on offense and a free safety when we’re on defense.”

Bill Beckner Jr. is a TribLive reporter covering local sports in Westmoreland County. He can be reached at bbeckner@triblive.com.

Tags: Franklin Regional