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Girls Youth second week action

Date last updated 2:10 pm Apr 29th, 2008

Girls youth teams down Hingham squads
On a cold, sometimes-rainy Sunday afternoon, the Cohasset girls youth lacrosse program took its show on the road to Hingham, and made the trip a worthwhile one by sweeping games at the older age levels.

At the 15-and-Under level (grades 7 and 8), it was a day for dominating play and scoring milestones, as the teams used a balanced attack and tremendous hustle to come away with convincing victories.

The Blue team started out trading goals with Hingham’s White team, despite having more scoring opportunities. Two goals from Alison Whelan and low-angle laser from Mariel Teague were answered by three Hingham scores and it looked like the game was headed for a seesaw affair. Kristen Alexander then broke things open by scoring two quick goals, the first on a direct free-position shot, the second after a strong drive to the front of the net.

After halftime, Cohasset scored three quick goals to seize control. Nicole Hajjar drove from behind the net to expand the lead, Marie Gilman converted a penalty shot and Whitney Jaffe became just the second player in the history of the Cohasset girls lacrosse program to score 100 goals as she drove to the front of the net and expanded the lead to 8-3. Christina Healy answered a Hingham score, and Kate Bodner expanded the lead with a blast from just outside the 8-meter arc. Hingham picked up two goals – despite the best efforts of goalie Sarah Evans, who had several big stops down the stretch – but Healy fed Isabella Flibotte and Hajjar scored her second of the day to end the game with the visiting team on top 12-6.

Evans finished the game with 7 saves, and had stalwart defensive help from Ellie Tedeschi, Alex Weissman, Megan Green and Sarah Karp in front of her, with the defense – and especially Tedeschi – helping to trigger Cohasset’s fast break.

The 15-U White team jumped out to a lead on Hingham Yellow so fast that it appeared the game would be a blow-out. Lauren Geary, Whitney Jaffe, Maria Buckley, Sarah Evans and Hope Kissick all scored in the first seven minutes of the game – with Buckley’s score assisted by Cassedy Gwynn – and it looked like the game might turn ugly.And then Hingham Yellow woke up, scored three quick goals and adjusted to Cohasset’s speed. Geary and Jaffe – the latter on a long lead pass from Evans – expanded the lead back to 4 as the game went to halftime 7-3. Jaffe scored the first two points of the second half, the latter on an assist from Amanda Farren, and Hope Kissick made it a 10-spot for the Cohasset team. After Hingham answered, Geary fed Amanda Farren for her first goal of the year, only to have two Hingham scores close the gap again. Moria Donohue potted a Jaffe pass and Geary completed her hat trick to put the game on ice. Kissick finished her hat trick to answer a late Hingham goal and the home team scored again as time expired, to make the final score 14-8.

Kissick’s first score of the day was her 50th goal, making her just the 7 th player in the history of the program to pass that milestone; with 64 career points, Kissick’s next goal or assist will move her past Maura Barnes and into sole possession of fifth place on the all-time scoring list Stephanie Brierley was a wall in the goal, making 10 saves, with Julia Canney and Eloise Lucas Lucas leading the defense on the day.

The White game also represented the 300th youth game coached by Chuck Jaffe, who started Cohasset Youth Lacrosse in 1996 with a single boys team of 28 players, and then started the girls program in 2002. The next win for the 15-U girls will give Jaffe his 200th victory; he also has 17 ties on his slate. At the 13-and-Under level (grades 5 and 6), the Blue team started the game with a bang and never looked back, holding the lead the entire way against Hingham White. Molly Fitzgerald took the ball behind the cage and found Kathryn Dunn on the doorstep for a quick 1-0 lead, and the team was off and running.

The story of the game was the outstanding, unselfish play of Shannon McGowan and Eliza Murphy. McGowan dominated on defense with four ground balls, three interceptions and added an assist. Murphy had six ground balls and three assists from her defensive middie position.

Cohasset Blue led by two at halftime, and extended its lead to four in the second half before Hingham scored on the last play of the game to make the final 11-8. Fitzgerald and Lexa Grasz led the scoring with a hat trick and an assist each. Dunn added another goal to finish with two on the day with Jackie Driscoll (two goals) and Isabelle Dunne (one goal) rounding out the scoring. Goalie Olivia Blackburn had another solid game between the pipes, making seven saves and starting several excellent clears.

The White team did not have the same dominance from the get-go, falling behind early as Hingham Yellow came out of the first draw with a strong surge and a fast score. Cohasset followed with a surge of its own, tying the game about two minutes later, only to have Hingham retake the lead quickly. At that point, Cohasset’s midfield settled down a bit and ground out the rest of the first half, taking the lead close to the 20 minute mark and coming off the field with a one goal edge at 6-5, due mostly to the hot shooting of Maddie Curley and Peyton MacNaught.

It was pretty clear Cohasset would need to shut down one particular Hingham player in the second half if it was going to win the game, and in the second half the White team’s defense adjusted to double-team that girl and keep close tabs on the home team’s two other significant playmakers. With the defense keeping Hingham’s key players in check, the rest of the team’s game improved, particularly on clears; Maggie Littlejohn and Cassandra Lieberman both did a good job moving the ball into the offensive zone, with help from Allie O’Callaghan and Caroline Prescott.

With Hingham equally focused on shutting down Cohasset’s attack – since that was who had answered for their early lead – Cohasset’s middies stepped up big in the second half. Isabelle Dunne led the way and Charlotte Allard, Morgen Montgomery and Valerie Farren all had goals. The score opened up to 11-8 in Cohasset's favor at about 19 minutes, but Hingham made an all-out run to get back in the game. That effort might have succeeded were it not for the efforts of goalie Taylor Frederick, who held the home team to one additional score, despite seeing the ball in her end for most of the game’s late stages. With Frederick and the defense standing tall, the game ended with a score of 11-9 in Cohasset's favor.