West Hartford’s Conard High School hosted Northwest Catholic – also of West Hartford – in a girls lacrosse CCC semifinal game on Tuesday.

Sports reporting is sponsored by Keating Agency Insurance

By Paul Palmer

The Conard girls lacrosse team scored 11 goals in the opening 12 minutes and rolled to a 19-3 win over Northwest Catholic in the semifinals of the CCC Tournament. Nicole Gorman and CC Cersosimo each had three goals, and Olivia Hole had six points (2-4) for the Red Wolves. In two games this season, Conard outscored the Lions 39-9 in a pair of victories.

Conard’s draw team was once again dominant from the start, winning 10 of 11 of them to get the Wolves possession and goals. The hosts scored four quick goals in the opening 2:04 of the game, starting with Ashley Gorman scoring on an 8-meter try :48 in. Cersosimo scored her first 30 seconds later when she was fouled and delivered on her own 8-meter shot.

Thirty-four seconds later it was Hole and Jacqueline Capone working a great give-and-go that ended with Hole scoring her team’s third goal. The quartet of goals ended with Ashley Gorman grabbing the free ball off a draw, racing downfield, and then scoring on a great solo effort.

Northwest goalie Tiegan Poduje was under fire the entire game and came up with a big save right after the Gorman goal, but Conard would not be denied. Capone and Hole teamed up for the next goal by Capone, and Northwest took a timeout. Twenty-nine seconds after play resumed it was Cersosimo converting a Hole pass to make it 6-0.

The Lions had their best possession of the first period with sustained pressure, but they turned it over before getting a shot on goal. Ashley Gorman once again grabbed a loose ball, sprinted to the other end, and then went low right to beat Poduje. Less than a minute later it was her older sister, Nicole, beating her defender in a one-on-one matchup and ripping a shot high to the far side for her team’s eighth goal.

The Red Wolves finished off the opening period with three more goals. First it was senior Courtney McPhee carrying the ball around the side of the cage and scoring. Then it was Hole carrying it out front, faking a shot, and then delivering the goal. Poduje shutdown Capone’s effort from straight on  with 1:55 to play, but Cersosimo finished off the scoring with her goal with :32 to play.

After the statement opening 12 minutes in which they held the Lions without a shot on goal, Conard was very much in control. “Whoever shows up to play against us, it is all about us and not them,” said coach Meg Cersosimo of her club’s mindset of staying focused on what they do, not what the other team does.

Northwest Catholic would get on the board with a quick score to open the second quarter when Madeline Rudy scored just 53 seconds in. Conard would respond with four of its own over the next 11:07 as the scoring eased from the first quarter. The Red Wolves also put on a defensive and possession clinic after Cersosimo took a two-minute penalty.

The Lions got one shot on goal that Maya Nanayakkara saved and started the transition from. The Wolves held the ball for over 90 seconds, denying Northwest any other shots on goal. At 5:30 into the second, with the teams playing at even strength, Caitlin Walsh picked up the first of her two scores when she converted from the 8-meter. Nicole Gorman was next moving in from the low side of the cage, cutting inside and delivering an overhand shot for the 13th goal for Conard.

Capone would score for Conard with 2:48 to play off an assist from Cersosimo. The sophomore had been awarded an 8-meter try and chose to pass off to Capone instead of shooting and the midfielder scored.

Once again the Red Wolves scored the quarter’s final goal with under a minute to go when McPhee – known more for her assists and defense – took a pass from Hole, carried the ball down the middle of the defense, and scored with :32 to play. McPhee also turned in a strong game on defense, marking Northwest’s Annie Szyluk and putting pressure on the Lions’ best offensive weapon. Time after time McPhee and the Conard defense double- and triple-teamed Szyluk as she fought to get into a shooting position.

Overall, the Wolves defense was solid all around, at times allowing Northwest to possess the ball, but never getting good looks at the goal. “We wanted to work on some things today that we can use as we move forward,”  said Cersosimo. “They have some good players over there [at NWC].”

Holding the 14-goal lead at the break, Cersosimo was able to give her starters a rest, and get some valuable game experience for other players. Both senior Kiara Morales and freshman Avery Freiday got minutes in the second half, and both had some timely saves for Conard.

Szyluk would score the second goal for Northwest with 2:45 to go in the third. She managed to rub off McPhee’s coverage with a perfect pick from Isa Jubrey, letting her get into the space she needed to score. But once again it was Conard getting the late goal – this time it was junior Bella Egress scoring on an 8-meter chance with just :08 to go in the third.

Grace Minahan would open the scoring for Conard with her goal 90 seconds into the fourth. She had an initial try that went high, but the Red Wolves grabbed the ball, reset the offense, and worked the same play for Minahan with Ashley Gorman feeding her the ball. Minahan cut into the center of the goal and scored.

Walsh would pick up her second of the game converting on an 8-meter to make it 18-2. Freiday had a big save on Ruby, but  Mary Peters was right there to grab the rebound and get it past Freiday for the score.

Aubrey Montresor would get Coanrd’s final goal when she used a bounce shot to convert on her 8-meter attempt. Freiday would wrap up her day when she had a big save on Szyluk late in the game to preserve the 19-3 win. “The whole second half we were able to rest our starters and get minutes for other players and they did a great job,” Cersosimo said of her team.

Next up for the Red Wolves will be Simsbury, the winner of the other semifinal over West Hartford’s Hall High School, 18-7, on Tuesday. The final game will be played at Conard on Thursday. During the regular season, the Red Wolves beat Simsbury 13-7. That loss to Conard was Simsbury’s only defeat in the regular season.

Game notes

• CC Cersosimo scored her 200th career point in the game against Northwest Catholic.
• Olivia Hole’s six points moved her closer to the 300-point career mark.
• Nicole Gorman is now seven goals away from 200 in her Conard career.
• The win moves Conard to 16-1 on the season and was their 12th in a row after the only loss of the season to Amity on April 17.
• Northwest Catholic dropped to 6-9 with the loss.

Conard scoring:

• Hole 2-4
• Cersosimo 3-2
• N. Gorman 3-0
• Capone 2-1
• McPhee 2-0
• A. Gorman 2-0
• Walsh 2-0
• Minahan 1-0
• Egress 1-0
• Montresor 1-0

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