On Friday, March 29, the Wellington High School girls lacrosse team hosted Spanish River High School and fell to the Sharks 16-14 in a hard-fought match.
The game was close throughout. The Wolverines (6-5) never trailed by more than three goals and tied the game 8-8 with 3:22 remaining in the first half after a three-goal run. The Sharks were able to recapture the lead 9-8 at the final whistle to end the first half of play.
Spanish River opened the second half winning the face-off and scored a goal to extend their lead to 10-8. The Wolverines had two early opportunities in the second half to tie the contest with penalties, but the stubborn Spanish River keeper denied the Wellington goals.
Spanish River grabbed another goal to go up 11-8, but a quick response by the Wolverines closed the margin, making it 11-9. Ana Stowell whipped the shot by the Sharks’ keeper off a pass from Morgan Stout. Within seconds, the Sharks answered back to extend their lead to 12-9.
The Wolverines scored two unanswered short-handed goals to come within a point of the Sharks 12-11, and the two teams continued to exchange goals as the game drew near to a close.
Late in the final minutes, Stowell drove through the Spanish River defenders and added another goal to make the score 14-13, as the Wolverines continued to trail but fighting back. The Sharks notched two more late goals and kept possession of the ball to eat away at the clock, securing the 16-14 win.
Five different players scored for Wellington. Stowell racked up five goals, three assists and five ground balls, while Stout and Emily Rundle each recorded three goals, Kaylee King had two goals and Jackie Gandolfo is credited with one goal.
