The girl’s varsity team was as talented as they come in 2018, with all signs pointing to taking home the hardware when it was all said and done.
However, the team’s season came to a close in a way that nobody had thought was a possibility. The Lancers were shutout 5-0 by Manchester Central in the state championship. It was certainly a tough pill to swallow for all of the players, but the team felt good about their season nonetheless.
“We were all obviously sad, but I think we were okay because we made it this far and we haven’t been this far for four years,” junior winger Alyssa Anderson said. “We knew we had a great season overall; we have that in the back of our minds.”
These girls have much to look forward to next season, with all but two of their players returning. Junior defenseman Abbie Ellis is looking forward to redeeming what happened in the last game of her junior season.
“I’m really excited for next year because our team will still be really good,” Ellis said. “I’m just sad that we won’t have our two seniors next year.”
The team certainly has something to prove for themselves in 2019 after ending the season this way. The work and preparation begins in the summer for these girls. They all know exactly what they need to accomplish to be ready for another run at the state title.
“All of our team plays on club teams throughout the time we don’t play for high school, so we will all be fit in time for preseason,” Anderson said. “One other thing that really helped us this season was being with Meghan and Michelle (LHS athletic trainers) two days a week to get stronger on the field by being in the weight room, and also rolling out and stretching in the weight room to prevent injuries. I can really say that helped us a lot this year, and I think that’s one thing we will really need to continue for next year.”
After an underwhelming ending to an incredible season, there will be challenges that these girls face throughout next year. Focusing on the future is one of them, but Anderson feels that “the devastating loss is motivation for this group.”
“None of us want to remember that game,” Anderson said. “But at the same time we will use it as motivation because we don’t want it to happen again, and we will work harder to make sure of it.”
Despite the championship loss, there were positives that came out of the the game and will help these girls moving forward as they look to make another championship push.
“I think that we gained some experience playing in a high stake game, and that’ll help us when we get back there,” Ellis said.
The love and support Lancer Nation showed during their stretch run was remarkable. Let’s continue to be there for our teams as the winter sports season is right around the corner!
