The girls lacrosse season is off to a great start. On March 12, the girls varsity lacrosse team really showed their hard work and dedication by beating Park View High School 19-2. JV and varsity played against Dominion on March 17 resulting in JV sadly losing 14-1 and varsity losing 23-8. However, both teams put their entire hearts into the game and tried their absolute best.

During tryouts, you would have seen players whose passing and catching skills weren’t quite there yet. You also would have seen players who have been playing for years and it obviously showed with their swift movements and the way the ball seemed to naturally go into their pockets. Those who played for many years moved onto varsity, playing their hearts out every single game and participating in practices with Coach Oliver to make sure that they’re ready for every game and every scrimmage. Those who still needed to practice their skills, but still had so much potential to become amazing lacrosse players, were moved up to JV. Coach Wang and Coach Loebsack make practice very humorous and fun while still teaching the team the necessities and rules of the game and tricks and tips to beat opponents.

With games and scrimmages coming up, JV participates in line drills, shuttle drills, rapid fire drills, and live scrimmages putting JV girls up against each other. All players are taught how to play offense and defense to ensure that all parts of the field are covered with players who feel confident in their skills. Many freshmen are on JV, along with a few sophomores, and one junior. Each player from each grade has different strengths and weaknesses, however, when put together, the team is strong and growing stronger with every practice. Sophomore goalie Lexi Vankampen says, “I’m looking forward to improving on my clearing skills and learning how to block more goals. I’m expecting that the girls will improve and become better players because I believe in them and know that they can do it. We are currently practicing our communication skills on the field and we’re making a bunch of improvements.”

Varsity participates in line drills, practice drills, catching and throwing drills, all to make sure that they’re on their ‘A Game’ for the next games they will play. With many returning seniors, a handful of juniors and sophomores, and two freshman players, varsity has many talented players. Freshman Hanna Bond says that she is “looking forward to the season really starting” and is “excited to see where we are at the end of the season. I’m expecting to become an overall better player and I hope to be able to think faster in game situations.” Bond says that the team is improving their communications skills as well as becoming smoother with their defensive end and transitions. Sophomore Sophia Omar says that she is “looking forward to growing as a team, both skill wise and friendship wise.” Omar later states that she is expecting more competitive play on the field but knows that her incredible team is up to the challenge. Omar says that the team is working on getting comfortable with their less dominant hands.

Both JV and Varsity will be playing their upcoming games on March 26 at Washington-Lee. Be sure to stop by and watch the excitement!