EASTON – Pleasant Valley gave powerful Easton all it could handle in the first half of Monday’s District 11 Class 3A girls lacrosse semifinal.

Unfortunately for the Bears, though, the Red Rovers showed why they’re undefeated by controlling the second half and pulling away for a 20-9 victory.

The win sends Easton into Wednesday’s championship game, where it will face Freedom.

“With Easton, if we could just hang in there ...,” said Pleasant Valley head coach Toni Bush. “We were hoping to hang in there with them the whole way.

“I’m glad we had a good half ... before some things just didn’t go our way. I was so excited with that first half. But the second half was a different game.”

PV, the No. 4 seed in the bracket, stayed close throughout that opening half and trailed by just an 11-8 margin at the intermission.

The Rovers, however, allowed only one more tally the rest of the way while registering nine more goals.

“At halftime, we were within reach,” said Bush. “For the first 23 minutes of the game, it was back-and-forth, even tied. It was incredible to see this team hang with Easton.

“But then they put three or four quick ones in on us right at the end of the first half. And we were down by three going into the second half.”

Despite being close at the break, the Bears were dealt a major blow when top scorer Alex Bush was suffering the ill effects of a nagging injury.

With her not at 100%, the team was forced to make some changes on the field.

“She had an injury, and tonight it was really aggravated,” said Coach Bush. “By the second half, we had to make some adjustments.”

Bush still managed to end the contest with a team-high five goals, while adding two assists. Brielle McInaw also contributed three goals and four assists, while Julia DeYoung added a goal.

“Brielle worked hard,” said Coach Bush said. “They all worked really hard. But we had to pull her up to mid for a lot of the game. She is not used to playing mid. She is more of an attacker.

“We had a lot of players in different positions. We had to adjust in the second half a bit.”

The adjustments gave some players valuable experience as the team now looks ahead to next season.

While a majority of the players will return a year from now, some will not.

The contest was the last for seniors Lexi Walters, Summer Storm and DeYoung.

“They were there all year long,” said Bush about her upperclassmen. “And that example that they set for the younger players, it’s something I hope resonates with everybody. They’re die-hards. They’re all in. I just can’t say enough about that.

“No matter what, win or lose, they were always coming back. They always had that can-do attitude. That’s the example I love from them to reflect on our younger players.”

In the end, Easton simply had too much firepower.

The top-seeded Rovers received five goals from Lindsay Geiger, with Jocelyn Morgan and Leah Krieger each scoring four times. Ava Milia added three goals and two assists.

“Going into a game, like the one tonight with Easton, you do whatever you can to win,” Bush said. “At the end of the day ... after they let it all sink in, they’re going to give themselves a pat on the back.

“They’re still a little upset about the game now. But tomorrow we have our Color Award Day, where we will get together and have some fun on the field, and then we will hopefully send this season off with some smiles.”

SOMETHING OTHER THAN FOUR … Three out of the last four times the Bears have reached the district playoffs, they have been the No. 4 seed. It was no different this year. Bush kidded that she is looking for that to change. “We kind of have been in these four spots now two years running. I would really like to get up one more … I want to get out of the four spot. I guess that’s our goal next year – get out of the No. 4 spot.”

HAT TRICK ... Easton defeated Pleasant Valley three times this season. The Rovers won a 19-5 contest during the regular season, and an 18-8 decision in the EPC semifinals.

ON GUARD … Bears goalie Amanda Hayes kept her team within reach as long as she could, and finished the game with 13 saves.