The Blair girls' lacrosse team lost 12-14 against the Churchill Bulldogs on May 5 in a high-scoring game full of lead changes and excellent play by both squads.
The Blazers got off to a bit of a slow start and were down 3-1 in the beginning of the first half, but they responded with solid goalkeeping and rugged play in the midfield. With less than five minutes left in the first half the Blazers went up 8-4 on an unassisted goal by senior co-captain Mairead Hunter. However, the lead would shrink the Blazers and they would go into the second half up only one goal.
The second half was again a back and forth battle with each team taking the lead only to loose it minutes later. The Blazers opened up the half with a goal by senior co-captain Ariel Wilcheck off a feed from senior Beth Gula, but this lead wouldn't last long as Churchill would come storming back.
Blair coach Michael Horne was satisfied with his team's performance despite the disappointing loss. "We played well and a couple breaks went their way, and they just happened to have the lead when the game was over," said Horne.
Many players for Blair stepped up and played well. The always-consistent senior co-captains Wilcheck, Hunter and Sarah Robinson had excellent offensive games as the trio combined for a bulk of the teams goals. Junior Lauren Finkel provided the team with a spark scoring three goals along with speedy and gritty play in the midfield. Also, sophomore Maddie Driskill had a standout performance hustling all over the field and contributing a goal and several assists.
Blair's defense was inconsistent at times but senior goalkeeper Anna Benfield made several key saves and junior Christina Ji played aggressively. However the game turned into a high-scoring offensive showcase, not a defense battle.
Ji felt the girls played a good game but that luck just did not go their way. "I think we did well as a team. Overall it was a matter of them capitalizing on their opportunities," said Ji.
The Churchill game was the second of three games the Blazers will play in three days. The Blazers were coming off a quality win over Magruder, 16-13, the night before and have a game against Sherwood tomorrow evening.
Horne felt the team could have benefited from more rest, but the schedule was changed due to rain cancellations with the Magruder and Sherwood games.
Erik Kojola. Erik Kojola is a senior in the Communication Arts Program at Blair. He plays both lacrosse and soccer for Blair and hopes to continue his lacrosse career in college. He writes sports for SCO and a variety of other topics. More »
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