The girls’ varsity lacrosse team experienced several losses, finishing the season 2-10-0; still, the girls embody what it means to be a Wyvern by displaying perseverance. Led by Co-captains junior attacker Scarlett Bourgoin, junior goalie Sarah Balag, and junior defender Ellory Goodhue, the girls push the team to put up a fight against every opposing team.
This spring season has been one of immense growth, with challenging plays, defensive strategies, and an overall strong game IQ. Thanks to the excellence of Head Coach John Hissick and Assistant Coach Allegra Kotowitz, the girls fostered an exceptional team culture, capitalizing on the younger players’ willingness to adapt and the upperclassmen’s display of leadership.
Freshman midfielder Lauren Kocay shared this sentiment, believing that even with several losses under their belt, their communication and team culture posed a tough challenge for their opponents. “I think our team has really bonded in a way that everyone can just trust each other and communicate very well on and off the field,” Kocay said. “I think that communication is something that has really grown over the season and has continued to help us during games.”
The girls played against several exceptional teams, most notably Loomis Chafee, Taft, and Choate Rosemary Hall. While they unfortunately lost all three games, Bourgoin believes they were the most beneficial. “Losing to the bigger teams helps us learn from our mistakes,” Bourgoin said. “We started the season playing Loomis and only scored one goal, and ended with Taft, where we scored five. I think it just shows that if you put forth effort and learn from your losses, there will be a better outcome.”
The highlight of the season, however, was their remarkable win against Marianapolis Preparatory
School on May 2, where they scored a whopping 15 goals. The players pushed themselves across the field, with defense allowing no goals and fighting for every turnover. The attackers strengthened their offensive plays, such as “Pancake,” where players from the top of the 12-meter line time their cuts and sprint low. It works continuously until a player gets a feed from below and is then able to get a shot off. The ability to slow down the plays and work to make them successful in a real game situation was a nice change of pace for the girls used to playing phenomenal teams. They were able to build their confidence and ability to play as a team, and create positive attitudes that they carried with them into the following games.
With a relatively young team (15 underclassmen and only six upperclassmen), the team definitely has areas in need of renovation for next year’s spring season. Sophomore attacker Jayne Wilson believes the team has an abundance of potential moving forward. “Since we’re such a young team, we have the chance to grow and improve together, both on and off the field,” Wilson said. “Whether we utilize more team bonding, getting ice cream, or having dinner, it would definitely be helpful and improve us within our small community.”
