CHS girls cruise past Ephrata in lacrosse

Ephrata s Rachel Stauffer (left) and Kari Longstaff (11) of Cocalico square off Monday afternoon in Denver. (Photo by Preston Whitcraft)

Monday, the girls’ lacrosse game between Ephrata and Cocalico was a tale of two teams. One is a team continuously building itself into a section contender. The other is a team building for a strong run into the post-season

The Cocalico girls defeated Ephrata 15-3. The Lady Mounts netted three-straight goals in the second half, but the comeback wasn’t enough to stop the well-balanced strike and defense of the Lady Eagles. Ephrata s Katie Albright and Tina Bonomo scored on shots from free play and freshman Brooke Overly had the final goal of the contest. Cocalico came out of the gate storming. Senior Haley Mitchell put in the first goal of the contest less than a minute in. The Lady Eagles did not look back at that point scoring 10 straight goals going into the second half. They followed up in the second half scoring five goals on five shots after on-point downfield passing. Mitchell and junior Kari Longstaff combined for 10 goals and seven assists. Despite the wide margin in score, Ephrata showed resiliency and great speed throughout. We’ve been playing really well the past two games, said Mounts Coach Tara Walls on her players’ constant growth as a team. We have a lot of players coming from other sports. They are putting in the effort and are now dedicating themselves to the sport.

As a first-year coach, Walls is trying to build a solid program where 75 percent of the players are new to the team this season. They have looked better from last year to this year and from the first game up to now, said Cocalico Coach Mary Beth Cardin on Ephrata s play. I see improvements in Ephrata and they have the consistency to eventually reach the top of section.

Cocalico (6-0) on the other hand is already building for post-season play. The important element playing a large role in the build is Cocalico s system of youth lacrosse programs. The players are coming to the varsity level with the fundamentals and know-how already intact. Things that weren’t automatic last year are this year. We are more consistent and have better catch and throw, said Cardin. The Lady Eagles’ biggest test is yet to come in the section. Although, Cardin believes the Lady Eagles have the athletes and the chemistry to make the post-season and potentially make a run at the state championship. Things are starting to click, Cardin said. We have the ability to get further into the playoffs this year. In order to do that they need to play hard, do their best and leave everything they have on the field.

Kari Longstaff and Mitchell both had five goals to pace the Lady Eagles. Cortney Gensemer and Avery Longstaff each netted two goals apiece while Kayli Lescoe also got on the board. In addition to Monday s game, the Lady Eagles also were in action last Thursday at L-S where they earned a hard-fought 16-10 victory. Kari Longstaff led the way with eight goals while Mitchell added five markers for the winners. Avery Longstaff and Lescoe aslo tallied for Cocalico. Allie Stauffer made eight saves in goal to collect the win. Ephrata also was in action last Thursday as visiting Conestoga Valley scored a 21-10 victory over the Lady Mounts. Brittany Byers led Ephrata with four goals while Rachel Stauffer added three in the loss. Albright (two) and Bonomo were the other two EHS goal scorers. More GIRLS LAX, page B-2