It was not quite Friday night lights as the Falcons boarded the bus early in the afternoon for a long journey to face a brand-new opponent - their third away game of the week. The miles on the back roads only fueled the anticipation, as players prepared for a tough matchup against a team they had never seen before. The Unionville Longhorns came into the game standing at 5th in the PIAA D1 2A rankings. Pennsbury entered 17th in PIAA D1 3A standings. Although the Falcons were 2 for 2 in games this week, the prediction was that Unionville was going to be a completely different level of competition and the PHS coaches could only hope that their squad was prepared for battle. The 1 1/2 hour bus ride gave them plenty of time to think about it. The campus was alive as it was the Longhorn's homecoming night in addition to many other activities happening around the school. Pennsbury staggered off the bus, collected their gear and made their way to the turf field, locked in for warm ups. The message in the pre game huddle was the same as it has been since day one - THE TIME IS NOW, No One Waits. Unionville struck first, three minutes into the game, on a beautifully executed penalty corner putting Unionville up 1-0. Bella Rossman placed a perfect straight shot into the corner giving PHS goalie, Abby McCole, no time to even think about making a save. "The shot was really well placed and definitely sent the message that they weren't wasting any time to show us who they were. It was a little bit of a gut punch, but I had total faith in our girls and knew they would answer," explained PHS head coach, Traci Curtis. Pennsbury didn't have an answer quite yet and Unionville sent another message with three minutes left in the first quarter on a long hit opportunity. The attack sent the ball into the circle and Bella Rossman assisted Kyra O'Donnell in a scuffle in front of the goal to put them up 2-0 going into the second quarter. "Yes, we were down 2-0, but we came into the huddle understanding that there was a lot of game left to play. It was all about believing in our abilities and working together as a team to execute, connect, and let our hearts lead the way. We were so impressed with our players' calm, focused attitudes. There wasn't much to say except keep working and push through the hard," said Curtis. And that they did. It did not take long for the Falcons to find their connection and make it a one goal game. "The goal started from the midfield with great one time passing up the left side - Leila Curtis to Mallory Harrison to Ryan Burdette. Ryan Burdette sent Abby Iacona a great through ball and Iacona took a quick shot that got deflected up and Regan Rodriguez picked up the deflected ball in the air and knocked it past the goalie. It was awesome hand-eye control by Rodriguez and a great decision by Iacona to put the ball on cage quickly because we were numbers up but they were gaining on us in the circle," said Curtis. "It was a 2-1 game and changed the whole trajectory of our mindset," Curtis added. The score held at 2-1 going into halftime. The third quarter belonged to the Falcons as they worked seamlessly, passing and connecting across the field. Abby Iacona set up the tying goal after a great passing series up the field. "Ava Pinto made a super smart cut back for a ball and sent an awesome through pass to Rodriguez who carried it and pushed it ahead to Iacona. Iacona took it baseline and dumped it to stroke where Leila Curtis was waiting with a great one time shot. The goalie never had a chance to make the step and the game was tied 2-2," explained Curtis. "It was so much fun to watch them work together as a unit. It was really, really great hockey on both sides of the ball," Curtis said. Four minutes later, it was another Rodriguez - Iacona combo pushing up the right side of the field. "Iacona, once again, selflessly set up the third goal with a shot across to put it in play. Burdette collected the rebound and lifted it past the Longhorn goalie to put the orange and black up 3-2," said Curtis. There was still plenty of game left and the Falcons needed to find a way to hold onto the lead. Unionville had strong sticks, hard shots, and played smart hockey - it was going to take almost perfect playing to deny a Longhorn goal. The final 15 minutes was all Pennsbury had to hold tight to the 3-2 lead and walk away with the win. Unionville attacked with ferocity in the fourth and spent a lot of time in Pennsbury's red zone. "Our defense played lights out today - Abby Hicks, Cailyn Reilly, Payton Worth, Abby Anderer, Joley Hohman, and Abby McCole shut down Unionville for three straight quarters, and especially denied them in the final fifteen," stated Curtis. "They are a solid unit and work so well together. The effort given by them to hold the Longhorns to those first two goals was a reflection of their working for the greater good - we are so grateful for their hearts." "Our attack and mids worked so well together and made really smart decisions all around - Iacona had her hand in all three goals and we had three different goal scorers. We cannot be more proud of the come-from-behind win and the work they all put in today," said Curtis. "This was a great win, a great performance, and a great testimony to who we are this season. Unionville is a tough team who forced us to climb a mountain and we accepted the challenge." Pennsbury will hit the road once again on Monday to face Bensalem for the second time around.