Before each high school soccer game, referees round up the captains and coaches of each team for obligatory handshakes and the coin toss.
This year, the Catholic League girls' semifinal between Archbishop Wood and Lansdale Catholic was a little different. There were two snaps, a fist bump, and a hug, among a few other things.
The irregularity turned heads and raised eyebrows, but to Wood's Leah Check and Lansdale's Bryn Wassel, it was just their handshake.
"We've been doing it for years," Wassel said, laughing. "It is so childish that it is fun."
"Not everyone realizes how close we are," Check said. "That's not going to change because we are playing against one another."
Close friends since third grade, the two met when they played on a recreational soccer team together. At that time, the girls didn't even know they also happened to be neighbors.
Still living on the same street as they did when they were eight, the two attended Mary Mother of the Redeemer grade school before deciding on different high schools. Check is a stopper for the Vikings, and Wassel is a forward for the Crusaders.
Twice, Check and Wassel have met in the Catholic League championship game - in 2009 when they were freshmen, and a year later.
On both occasions, Wood got the best of the Crusaders, as the Vikings won three straight PCL titles starting in 2009.
It didn't surprise the senior captains that their teams, fierce rivals, would meet again in a high-stakes matchup, this time in a Catholic League semifinal two weeks ago. Having last played each other early in September, in a one-goal match, both knew the semifinal would be tough.
The Crusaders pulled off an upset, winning by 2-0 in what Wassel described as "the best feeling ever." Lansdale did not prevail in the championship game, as its season ended with a loss to Archbishop Ryan.
But the defeat meant that Wood was still alive, as it had the better regular-season record. Check and the Vikings went on to win the District 12 Class AA title in dominating fashion, 11-0 over Rush of the Public League.
For Wassel and Check, their teams don't merely face off against each other; the pair's respective positions mean that Check is often tasked with marking Wassel, who finished her senior season with 30 goals.
In their four seasons, the two have faced off in some memorable moments.
"The first time, it was awkward," Wassel said. "Then the ball comes to us and it gets serious."
Before the league final, the girls reflected on the magnitude of the game, acknowledging that if Wassel won, Check's season would be over, but if Wassel lost, Check's senior year would continue.
Check, who attended the PCL title game to support Wassel, had mixed feelings while watching the Crusaders face Ryan.
"It was bittersweet," Check explained. "I wanted to see her have that success and the amazing feeling, but I also wanted a second chance."
The Vikings move on to the Class AA state tournament, in which they will face Villa Joseph Marie, the winner of the District 1 tournament. The game will be at 5 p.m. Wednesday at Council Rock North.
Wassel remembers that during their first soccer tryouts in freshman year, the two met up to talk about how nervous they were and how intimidating the seniors looked.
On the last day, each ran to the other's house with news that she had made the team.
Next year in college, they will have a longer-than-30-second commute to one another, with Wassel going to Temple to play soccer and Check pursuing a degree in psychology, most likely at Pitt.
"She's always been there to understand," Check said. "I'm proud to say that she's my best friend and she is going to make such a mark.
"I can't wait to see all the amazing things she is going to do there."
Contact Kate Harman at rallysports@phillynews.com.
