NORTH EASTHAM – Nauset coach Heather Stevens rang in her birthday with style Wednesday afternoon, as her Warrior girls’ lacrosse team opened the season with a dominant, 16-5 victory over the St. John Paul II Lions.
Nauset Regional High’s Sam Berry is attacked by St. John Paul II’s Amanda Gould. Berry scored six goals and tacked on four assists in the Warriors’ 16-5 win over the Lions Wednesday afternoon.
Phil Garceau photo for Capecod.com Sports
Sam Berry supplied the offense, as she went off for six goals and four assists in the win, while Tess Ropulewis added three goals, including the game’s first goal just 35 seconds into the contest.
Draw control proved to be a major factor in the game, as the Warriors won 11 of the 13 draws in the opening half, paving the way for a 9-3 halftime lead.
“Draw control has been our issue, so it was good to get that going,” Stevens said after the game. “Our last two scrimmages we definitely had some issues with it, so we are trying some different combinations of people on the circle and those taking the draw, so we will continue to work with that.”
St. John Paul II (0-1) didn’t back down from the Warriors in the early going, answering on both of Nauset’s first two goals of the game. MiKenzie Carbone scored at the 3:42 mark to tie the game at one, and following a goal from Berry, Brianna Wootfin tied the game once again at the 9:04 mark of the opening half.
But from that point on the Warriors took over, as they went on a 13-1 run that lasted until midway through the second half.
Joining Berry and Ropulewis on the score sheet was MacKenzie Meads, Lizzie Douglass and Sarah Wardlaw.
“We tend to take a little while to warm up,” said Stevens. “I was a little nervous, we just scrimmaged Nantucket and they were beating us at the half, so I was hoping that we would settle in, which did happen.”
Nauset’s MacKenzie Meads fires on St. John Paul II goalie Lily Almquist in Wednesday’s 16-5 Nauset victory.
Phil Garceau Photo for Capecod.com Sports
Any slim hopes for a comeback bid were thwarted in the early going of the second half, as Nauset scored five goals in the opening four minutes of the half, as they took a commanding 14-2 lead.
With the game out of hand, the Lions found late goals from Wootfin and Olivia Bengston in the final 10 minutes to close out the scoring.
“We have a lot of really fast players, we have a lot of wings and wing subs so it’s nice to be able to come off the bench with the same speed and intensity,” Stevens explained.
Despite the lopsided score, the Lions received a phenomenal effort from goalie Lily Almquist. While Nauset scored nine goals in the opening half, Almquist made 12 saves to keep the score respectable.
— Story contributed by Phil Garceau, edited by Capecod.com Sports Editor Sean Walsh.
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