The girls’ lacrosse team always shines brightly, but this year, they truly rose to the top. After having a great regular season with a 10-7 record, they still made it clear that they wanted to push their way to the top during counties. Their determination was evident especially when going against Wayne Hills, a team that was 11-1 at the time, losing only one game. They were a threat to the lady Lancers, especially after losing to them in the off-season. Still, the Lancers proved the statistics wrong and rose to the golden standard.
In the quarterfinals, they went against West Milford who also proved how badly they wanted to win. They gave the Lancers a run for their money because the score was 16-5 on March 31st and later 10-6 on May 4th. The game was intense as some fans thought the Lancers wouldn’t come out of the game as winners. In the end, the Lancers remained brave and pulled out a win the second time in a row against West Milford this season. The game was intense as there was a lot of taking from the opposing team, but the Lancers blocked that out. The next game they needed to get out of their rut because it was against defending 2025 county champions, DePaul. Always a worthy competitor, DePaul has historically given Lakeland a run for their money as last season they beat Lakeland 19-7.
At the beginning of the first half, DePaul was beating Lakeland 5-1, and then the second half of the game, Lakeland played as a team and demonstrated what determination and grit is all about. Junior Myla Gotschall was ripped eight meters in and helped bring the score up after scoring four goals. The game was then tied for the 4th quarter as junior Amelia Diaz scored a goal, bringing the game to 8-7. Then in the last three seconds, a foul was called on Lakeland and an 8-meter was set up. Luckily, the opposing team missed and luck really proved to be on the Lady Lancers’ side. They won 8-7 against DePaul, completing an epic comeback.
The final game was against Wayne Hills whom Lakeland lost to 11-7 in a regular season game. Despite being ahead for most of that game, Lakeland ended up falling to Hills by four points. The Lancers, who haven’t been to a county final in two years and haven’t won a county final since 2018, knew they needed to win this one. During the Hills final, Lakeland was up one the whole game with Hills never giving up. Gotschall recorded six goals and seniors Christina Link and Sarah Cole scored three goals. Senior Clara Vargas had three draw controls as a defender, while senior Juliana Demetriou had three forced turnovers, and sophomore Rylee Thomas had 10 saves as the goalie. They all helped preserve the victory 12-11 against Hills.
Junior Mia Ryan said winning the counties put a lot of pressure on the team, but it was also great to see the team finally get the win they deserved.
“It feels great being County Champs, especially because of how deserving this was for the whole team, especially the seniors because they lost counties their freshmen year,” said Ryan.
Ryan admitted that she was nervous during the game.
“I was honestly so nervous because it takes seven seconds to score a goal, and if the other team gained possession, we would risk tying the game and going into overtime,” she said. “I knew Clara could do it though, so I had no doubt for her.”
According to Ryan, there was a lot of pressure each playoff game because they were all so close, but the end was worth it.
Each girl on this team contributed to the win no matter the position. The eight-year streak of losing counties is finally over for the Lancers as they are finally champions once again. The road wasn’t easy as there were many obstacles during the regular season and the playoff games, but the Lancers really wanted it and strived to get the win for their school. This was indeed a full circle moment for the seniors as they lost counties their freshmen year and went back to win it all their senior year. The Lakeland Lady Lancers are finally the golden standard as county champions.
