Broughton girls lacrosse hands Wakefield its first loss of the season
The Broughton girls lacrosse team is sure glad sophomore Leaha Renee Burgess is back.
Burgess corralled a loose ball with 1 minute, 46 seconds left after No. 2-ranked Wakefield had rallied from five goals down (11-6) to tie up their 4A Cap-8 Conference match at 13-all.
That possession would eventually lead to the game winner by Carol Seigler 53 seconds later as the Capitals avenged a 9-8 loss earlier in the season to the previously unbeaten Wolverines 14-13.
“It feels so great. I’m just glad to be back,” said Burgess, who suffered a concussion and a neck injury in the loss to Wakefield on March 9. “I saw (the loose ball) and wanted it. I knew I was going to get it.”
No. 3 Broughton improved to 7-2 overall and 2-0 in the Cap-8. Wakefield dropped to 9-1 and 1-1.
The Caps have won just four of the last 14 meetings with Wakefield. And they have all come by one goal (14-13, 13-12 in 2014, 13-12 in 2013 and 16-15 in 2010).
Turning point
After Seigler’s goal, the faceoff was won by Wakefield’s Julie Anne Pretty, who had four goals.
The future Meredith player took the ball straight at the goal, where she was met by a double team and a collapsing Broughton defense.
The ball would pop out and Broughton’s Marcy Waters picked it up and advanced it down the field where here teammates ran out the clock.
“We had a defensive lapse late that really hurt us,” Wakefield head coach Denna Grassso said. “And we couldn’t get it back. Their defense really crowded us on defense and got the ball away.”
What worked
Teamwork was the name of the game for the Caps, with assists on eight goals.
The winning shot was one that senior Farrell Guest and Seigler had been working on all season.
Guest snuck behind the net and went around the back with the ball until Seigler cut into the middle. Guest’s pass found her perfectly, and it ended with the ball in the back of the net.
“Our names rhyme and people always get us confused with each other,” said Guest who had three goals and three assists. “Me and Carol have tried that one shot all season. Finally, we get it to go.”
Said Seigler, who had four goals and two assists: “And it beats (Wakefield). What a time for it to finally happen.”
Needs improvement
It wasn’t ball-watching that disturbed Grasso, it was her team’s lack of awareness where the ball was.
“That was our big thing,” she said. “We got caught watching the person we were marking and not even ball watching. Three times in a row we were caught not knowing where the ball was.”
Three to know
Samantha Begin, Wakefield: Senior defender had six forced turnovers, four outright steals.
Jessica Lynch, Wakefield: Senior had 11 saves. The 5-foot-3 goalie also had 11 in the first meeting.
Carson Harvey, Broughton: Junior notched six saves in net, giving her 14 total against Wolverines.
This story was originally published April 6, 2016 at 9:30 PM with the headline "Broughton girls lacrosse hands Wakefield its first loss of the season."