The girls lacrosse team fell to the St. Ignatius Wildcats 21-2 on Wednesday evening.
The Bears started off sharp, with sophomore midfielder Jane Pence winning control off the opening draw, but struggled to find a rhythm. St. Ignatius took advantage of this, jumping to a 3-0 lead within the first three minutes of the game.
Despite the slow start, senior midfielder Auden Jones dominated the circle, consistently giving M-A opportunities for midfielders to gain possession. Effective defensive efforts from senior defenders Shelby Rider and Gabby Rothstein helped hinder St. Ignatius’ momentum, while senior defender Molly Gray worked tirelessly to push the ball up the field.
Still, the Wildcats continued to build their lead, tallying several goals throughout the next few minutes. Even so, junior defender Brooke Ver Ploeg stepped up defensively, boxing out St. Ignatius’ strongest attacker.
Closing out the first quarter, junior defender Aryn Roodman sunk a goal, but it was called back due to a crease violation. The Wildcats held a 10-0 lead heading into the second quarter.
“Obviously, the outcome was unfortunate, but based on the other teams, they have a bunch of skilled players, so that was expected. I think we did show up better than in the past years,” Pence said.
St. Ignatius’ unstoppable offense persisted, scoring their eleventh goal with 11:10 left in the second quarter. Still, M-A continued to fight as Jones dominated control of the draw.
Soon after, Gray performed an impressive interception, breaking the Wildcats’ possession streak. Sophomore defender Ella Altman contributed heavily on defense, repeatedly fighting for ground balls and forcing turnovers, while the Bears worked to maintain their composure under pressure.
After the Wildcats drew a yellow card for repeated fouls with 6:10 on the clock, the Bears utilized on the man-up opportunity, pressing on defense as junior goalkeeper Stella Mattsson blocked goal attempts.
Junior attacker Iliana Narvaez created space with a smooth offensive dodge and found the back of the net with 1:19 remaining, scoring the Bears’ first goal of the game. However, the Wildcats quickly retaliated, with a goal of their own under a minute later, closing out the first half with a 17-1 lead.
M-A entered the second half determined to compete, bringing improved communication and teamwork on defense. Roodman continuously shone on offense, connecting passes and successfully running the ball down the field multiple times.
Throughout the third quarter, the Bears picked up steam, but were unable to keep pace with St. Ignatius, who tallied two more goals to give them a 19-1 lead. Following a remarkable defense from M-A, senior midfielder Mae Kunihiro successfully ran the ball down the length of the field. A penalty on the Wildcats put sophomore attacker Anna Kate Brown in a promising position, but her penalty shot narrowly missed. St. Ignatius maintained possession until the end of the third quarter, up 19-1.
“It was a more grueling game, but I think we stayed positive and tried our hardest,” Kunihiro said.
In the final quarter, M-A disregarded the score and continued to battle. Senior goalkeeper Eloise Yuk came up with a key save, and sophomore attacker Lindsay Lemberger fought through the pressure to give the Bears space offensively. With just under two minutes remaining, Altman broke through, scoring M-A’s second goal of the game and proving their offensive power after a tough match.
After a tricky battle, the Bears were unable to pull ahead, losing 21-2 to the Wildcats’ relentless defense.
“I’m really proud of our team. We kept our heads up and still put in 100% effort, even when the score was pretty harsh,” Kunihiro said.
The Bears will face the Menlo Knights away on Tuesday at 4 p.m.
