Yesterday afternoon, the girls’ lacrosse team shook off 46-degree temperatures and 20 mph winds in a convincing 17-8 victory over league rival Long Island Lutheran.

Lutheran came out strong and took a 2-0 lead through the first 5:27. Natalia Pagano got the Bears on the board at the 17:32 mark, but LuHi answered less than two minutes later to push their advantage back to 3-1. The Bears responded with a 3-0 run over a three-minute span to take their first lead at 4-3, thanks to three straight goals from Pagano, the first on a Sera Prinz assist. LuHi knotted the game at 4-4 with 11:38 left, but the Bear defense would keep them off the board for the next 10 minutes. In the interim, The Brook scored the next four goals to take control of the contest.

Sydneyanna Giardini gave the Bears the lead for good with 10:00 remaining, following a clear from Mia Trama. Trama added the next goal on a free position strike. Prinz notched a free position score of her own before Giardini bookended the run with a bullet to the top right corner. During the surge, senior captain Emily Berger made three free position saves to keep LuHi at bay and allow the offense to wrest away the game’s momentum.

LuHi ended the Bears’ run on a score with 1:37 left in the half, but Ali Puopolo scored with just 6.7 seconds left on a pass from Sophia Dabbraccio to give the Blue & White a 9-5 halftime advantage.

The Bears dominated possession in the second half and watched their lead swell behind an energetic defense and a balanced offensive attack. They notched the first two goals of the half, courtesy of two strikes from Trama at the 24:22 and 18:00 marks, and were never tested from there. LuHi scored the next two goals to pull within 7-11, but the Bears tucked away the next five scores to put the game away. Pagano scored three times during the stretch, while Dabbraccio and Trama added free position goals. Giardini capped off the day’s scoring on a strike with 27 seconds remaining.

Pagano led the offense with 7 goals, while Trama added a hat trick. Berger anchored the defense with 5 free position saves and 3 additional stops on the doorstep.

The Bears are back in action on Thursday afternoon when they host Avenues in PSAA action.

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