Lee Girls Run Past Hoosac Valley
CHESHIRE, Mass. -- The Lee High School girls lacrosse team knows what its like to watch its opponent run away with a game.
On Thursday, the Wildcats were doing the running.
Lee generated about half its scoring chances in transition in earning a 14-5 win over Hoosac Valley behind four goals from captain Alyssa Kelly.
"We had a game against Wahconah, and they beat us the same way we won today," Lee coach Dave Galisa said. "So we learned from them."
And after spotting the Wildcats (4-5) a 10-3 half-time lead, the Hurricanes learned a little something as well -- a lesson in the importance of stopping the ball in transition that they applied after the break.
"We did a much better job, but we still need to work on angles in transition," Hoosac coach Molly Meczywor said. "The first three or four games we were giving up goals because we weren't in goal side position or we weren't in good position to crash or we just weren't communicating. That's really improved.
"Now, it's transition. They were a quicker team than us, and they took advantage. ... But, yeah, we definitely did better in the second half."
Hoosac held its own against a more experienced Lee squad in the opening minutes. When Holly Cadran (four goals) curled around from behind the goal and went top corner at about the 16-minute mark, she cut Lee's early lead to 3-2.
But the 'Cats scored the next five goals, finishing the run with a goal by Julia King with just less than three minutes left in the half.
Hoosac's Alie Mendel scored off a run down the left wing to get the 'Canes back on the board, but Lee scored the next two.
Kelly finished off a transition chance with 34 seconds left before the half by scooping a ground ball and beating Hoosac goalkeeper Kelsey Holsey to make it a seven-goal lead at the half.
It could have been a lot closer if not for the play of Lee goalkeeper Hanna Hunter.
She made three stops in a row with Lee ahead, 7-2 -- one in transition and one on a free position chance.
"Hanna has done a wonderful job for us this year -- same as last year, she's picked up right where she left off," Galisa said. "The defense did a little bit better today. We had a couple of shooting space calls, but overall, they cleared the ball well today. Against Wahconah we had a little trouble getting ball out quickly and getting boxed in in the back. So I was happy to see that, too."
Meczywor was happy to see her team show improvement at the offensive end.
"We're not where I'd like us to be, but every game we get better and better at the little things," said of the Hoosac-Drury cooperative team. "With a very young team, we set goals every game or every half. We say these are little things we need to do.
"[Today] we said we need to have 17 shots, and we were pretty close to that in the second half. We said we want to do a little better in transition, and we did that. With a young team, one of the things you have to do is take baby steps.
"Our seventh- and eighth-graders have done a great job of stepping into the fire. They're not playing like seventh-graders and eighth-graders."
On Tuesday, Lee hosts Mount Greylock and Hoosac travels to Wahconah.