Until we meet again! Huskers take round 1
Second half surge leads Huskers over Lakeland/Panas, 8-5

 

Husker Jen Fischer congratulates Kaitlyn O’Connor after a goal.

By Jim MacLean
Both teams were looking for an edge, and with time running down on a tightly contested first half, goalie Lauren McCauley provided one for the Yorktown girls’ lacrosse team as the Huskers took on crosstown rival Lakeland/Panas.

McCauley made the save on a free-position shot by Rebel star Katie Rogers with just three seconds left in the half to keep it tied up at 3-3.

Then the Huskers carried over the momentum and scored the first three goals of the second half to open up a 6-3 lead on their way to a 8-5 win.

“Lakeland/Panas is an excellent team and I was glad to see our kids step up,” explained Yorktown coach Melissa Alamprese. “McCauley had an awesome game.

She made some saves that really changed the momentum. I couldn’t be happier right now, but we know it was a very even game and we still have to play them there.”

That’s why there was no celebrating by the Huskers after the game, because everyone knows that this was just round one. It was a big one, it always is when these two teams meet, but they will meet again in a few days at Lakeland, and they could very well meet again down the road in the playoffs.

It was certainly a playoff-like atmosphere Monday at Yorktown as both teams came in flying high. While Lakeland/Panas came into the game with an undefeated 10-0 mark on the line, Yorktown definitely needed a win and a chance to bounce back after suffering its first defeat on the road just a few days earlier at Suffern.

The Huskers rebounded from that loss with a one-goal victory on Saturday over Long Island powerhouse Ward Melville, but they needed to score a win over a power league foe to make up for that one loss to the Mounties.

“We knew we had to step up and this is a big win for us,” admitted senior captain Liz Falco. “It’s a good win after the loss to Suffern. We walked into that one too confident. This time we worked together and made it happen. Everone is stepping up.”

Falco ended up scoring the fist and last goal of the game for the Huskers as she finished with three goals overall. Katrina Dowd also scored three goals as the dynamic duo led the way, and Kaitlyn O’Sullivan scored a pair of goals.

For Lakeland/Panas, Chelsea Robinson had a big game as she finished with two goals. Rogers, Jess Mucci and Caitlin Collins each scored a goal as well, but it was not enough offense to get it done for the Rebels as they struggled to score in the second half.

In the first half, Rebel goalie Molly Dineen-Carey came up with a bunch of big saves as she finished with ten overall for the game. Robinson scored both of her goals to help keep it tied up.

However, the first ten minutes of the second half belonged to Yorktown as the Huskers opened it up. The Rebels tried to rally back with goal from Rogers and Caitlin Collins to cut the lead down to 6-5, but then Dowd and Falco took over for the Huskers as they scored the final two goals of the game.

“Molly did very well in goal, Kaurey Foley was very steady on defense, and Chelsea was a threat for our attack,” said Lakeland/Panas coach Sharon Sarsen. “We struggled picking up ground balls, we struggled getting draw control, and our offense and shooting was miserable. The good thing is we get this kind of game on May 1st. Fortunately we have a lot of tough games coming up where we have to get better.”

Maybe this loss will do for the Rebels what the loss to Suffern did for Yorktown.

All of the Yorktown girls seemed to agree that the loss to Suffern was just what they needed to get focused on what lies ahead.

“That was a big wake up call and we had to redeem ourselves,” admitted Dowd, regarding the loss to Suffern. “It’s early in the season and there are still other big games to play. We all stepped it up and it was a team effort win.”