Girls’ JV lacrosse finished with one win and one loss during last weekend’s tournament in Columbia, MO. The team played two games: one against Illinois and one against Omaha. Their first game resulted in a 3-8 loss and the second ended with a 5-4 win, their very first of the season.
During the first game, the team lost many opportunities because of ground balls, or moments when the ball isn’t in possession of either team. Sophomore Kate Dunlea believes mistakes like these were the cause for the team’s loss.
“The first game started pretty rough, [and] we were all just kind of nervous ” Dunlea said. “We had just travelled two hours in the car and we were really tired and not ready to play a game.”
The second game went much better, according to Dunlea and sophomore captain Alyssa Vuillemin. They defeated Omaha by one goal and secured their first win of the season.
“I think something clicked in a lot of girls’ heads that winning possession is such a big part of lacrosse,” Vuillemin said. “We got possession more and won more ground balls, so we won the game.”
The tournament was a play-in, which means there was no official place given to any team. But had there been rankings, the squad would have tied for second.
JV coach Dennis Ehrich believes that this tournament not only served as a good bonding experience for the girls, but as a good way to develop the team.
“It’s a fun memory for the girls, [and] every game we play, we get better,” Ehrich said. “Going to Columbia accelerated our development as individual players as well as a team.”
10 of the 17 girls are first-year lacrosse players, and Dunlea and Vuillemin agree that their team has bonded and gained more confidence from the win and the tournament as a whole.
“We know we have the potential to win and are [now] way more confident going into games,” Dunlea said. “The rest of the season looks good, so I think we will keep getting better and hopefully get some more wins in.”