The girls’ lacrosse team spent much of this offseason preparing. Whether it was stick skills, endurance conditioning, or strength conditioning, they knew that what they did before the season is the foundation for what they will build their season on. And with three preseason scrimmages in the books, with two wins and one tie, it looks as though their hard work is starting to pay off.
The most recent of the three scrimmages was played at home against Poolesville on March 13. Having found their stride in the previous game, the girls cruised past the Falcons in an easy 11-6 victory. Sophomore midfielder Carli Mangum and the offense steamrolled the opposition, as Mangum netted four goals in the win. The stellar defensive effort was highlighted by the lockdown defense of seniors Maddy Scholz and Maddie Fowler. “Maddie and Maddy are crushing it this year,” senior captain and attackmen Lily Sokobin said. “If we are ever lacking we know that their defensive energy can kick start us to play better.”
Before that the girls took on Blake in an away game on Mar. 8. The squad jumped out to an early lead in the first couple of minutes with a goal coming from sophomore midfielder Raeann Carpenter. Realizing they were the superior team, the girls took their foot off the break in the second half, allowing the Bengals to come within two goals. However, Blake did not have the firepower to overcome the girls, who eventually won 9-6.
The girls’ proved to be strong in all facets of the game. Sophomore Grace Henschel, a transfer from Holy Cross, played solid defense and asserted herself as one of the better defensemen on the team. Offensively, senior captain Kelly Schuler added two goals in the win.
Previously the team matched up against Bethesda Chevy-Chase in their season opening scrimmage on March 7 at home. The game started out sloppy, as neither team had played a game yet. Evenly matched, the teams traded goals throughout the game and wound up tying 8-8. Mangum led the offense with three goals, and senior midfielder Breece Parsons racked up several faceoff wins. “We are such a young team because of the loss of so many seniors last year,” Mangum said. “I feel like the preseason helped us all really get to know each other on and off the field and gain some momentum.”
The season opener was Mar. 21 at home against Clarksburg. It will be covered in the next issue of the newspaper.

Charlie Eichberg

Editor-in-Chief