An overall record of 8-11? Okay.
A league record of 1-6? Really? If you say so.
The jerseys still said Mountain Lakes on them and during lacrosse season, whether it’s boys or girls, that name means a lot more than any records or statistics attached to them.
The Mountain Lakes girls proved that point Monday when, despite carrying a surprisingly unimpressive record, they still did what they often do: win a sectional title.
The second-seeded Lakers reaped the benefits of a demanding schedule when they traveled to Verona and narrowly denied the top seed its first-ever sectional title by virtue of a 14-13 victory in the NJSIAA North Jersey, Group 1 final.
Mountain Lakes (9-11) earned its second consecutive sectional title and sixth overall to advance to the Group 1 final Saturday at Hunterdon Central. The Morris County school will face Summit, the No. 1 team in the NJ.com Top 20, which won the South, Group 4 title with a 12-6 victory over No. 19 Mendham.
Junior Kayla Plotts, who was battling stomach flu just 48 hours earlier, scored six goals and Lindsay Gallert added a goal and six assists for Mountain Lakes, which fell behind 3-0 early, overcame deficits both before and after intermission, then held off a desperate late rally by Verona (15-5).
“It’s a big stage, and many of the kids on this field hadn’t played on that big of a stage yet, so it took some getting used to,” Mountain Lakes coach Jen Topakas said. “There’s a lot of pressure and nerves. I think once we got used to things, it started to go in our favor.”
Between controlling draws and winning 50-50 balls, the Lakers turned that early deficit into a 7-6 lead at the break by shutting out Verona for the final 11:45 of the first half. They carried the momentum into the early part of the second half, taking a 9-7 lead on one of the three goals by Julia Peterson, who also had two assists.
But just when the Hillbillies appeared to be fading, they countered with a 4-1 run to take an 11-10 lead with 10:53 left.
That is when Plotts reasserted herself, scoring three straight goals to start a 4-0 run that was capped by Nora Lin’s only goal, making it a 14-11 Mountain Lakes lead with 1:55 to go.
Verona valiantly battled back, getting goals from Chloe Theilmeier, with 1:33 left, and Jane Sorger, who flicked in a shot with 1:05 remaining.
The teams took turns grabbing possession of the ball in a frantic final minute, but Verona could not manage a potential game-tying shot.
“We definitely know what it takes to get to this stage of the season,” said Plotts, who was one of the returning players from Mountain Lakes’ 2022 sectional championship season. “And all the hard work and commitment that it takes to win it all. That feeling last season was just so incredible that we knew we really wanted to do it again.”
Sophomore Abigail Hawes added two goals and five draw controls to the win, while fellow sophomore Kaylin Oey, who also scored once, won seven draws. Emma Barkauskas, the Harvard-bound junior goalie, made 11 saves.
Senior Clara Nippes and sophomore Riley Kenrick led Verona with three goals apiece and each added two assists, while senior Bridget Lonsinger had team highs of six assists, eight ground balls and five forced turnovers. Sophomores Julia Dacey and Giada DeLorenzo (five ground balls) had two goals apiece, while senior Brooke Reinecker had a team-best five draw controls.
“I think we had the draw control advantage in the first half and we got some possessions and put in some goals,” Topakas said. “I think our defense held them for 11 minutes or so at the end of half. The defense got their way about them and made some adjustments to make some stops.
“And Kayla was outstanding. She was pretty sick on the weekend. For her to come and put in a performance like that is just such a credit to her character. She is just all guts and all in all the time.”
Plotts benefitted from the fact that the stomach bug that hit her came Saturday night and was gone by Monday, because there was no room for nausea or achiness against a Verona team that appeared ready to finally bring the program its first title.
Coach Fay Lonsinger said the Hillbillies are not a typical championship-caliber squad in that only one of the eight seniors, all of whom start, played club lacrosse growing up. Meanwhile, senior goalie Amanda Cavallo, who kept her team in the game with six saves, had not played that position until this season.
“We have a girl in goal who had never played goal before,” Lonsinger said. “She started two months before the season started. We have a group of girls who love the heck out of each other. None of the seniors played club lacrosse except my one (Bridget Lonsinger) who is going to Richmond (on a scholarship).
“We just have a group of kids who enjoy each other and are athletes. They play soccer, basketball and volleyball and are really gritty and work hard. But sometimes in states that can catch up to you. We are very lucky that we had such a great season.”
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