Hall hosted Wethersfield in West Hartford on Saturday, opening the 2026 season with a 12-5 win.

Sports reporting is sponsored by Keating Agency Insurance

By Paul Palmer

Hall senior captain Anya Leshem admitted she was a little nervous before the start of the Titans’ lacrosse season opener against Wethersfield.

It wasn’t just the pre-game one jitters, but rather something else. She came into the game with 997 career goals, and wanted to reach the century mark as quickly as possible. “I was nervous at first,” she said after the game. “Their goalie was very good, but my teammates calmed me down and told me to just play my game.”

It wasn’t Leshem who got things going for her team on Saturday but also sophomore Tali Kabakoff, who scored her first career and the game’s first goal just 1:10 in. She collected a loose ball near midfield and carried straight into the attacking zone and right at goalie Olivia Salemi. The underclassman was poised and deposited the ball into the back of the cage for the early 1-0 lead. Moments later it looked like Leshem had gotten on the board, but her goal was called back for a violation by Wethersfield. A pair of subsequent chances by Leshem were denied by Salemi and the Eagles offense struck twice in the next four minutes to take the lead.

Aliza Schleif evened things for Hall before Wethersfield retook the lead at 2:15. Leshem nearly tied things back up with 1:00 to play in the first, but was denied again by Salemi who played a strong opening period.

It took only 65 seconds into the second period for Leshem to start her climb to 100. Taking advantage of a free position play, she scored her team’s fourth of the game and the 998th of her career to tie it at 3. Lucy Gwiazdoski would put the Titans back in the lead with her shot across the goal to the far side that beat Salemi.

Hall had a chance to blow the game open with 5:41 to play in the second when they were awarded a 2-minute man advantage. They did manage to add one score with the extra player when freshman Josie Fenzel scored, and then 20 seconds after things were even again it was Claire O’Donnell scoring off the fastbreak pass from Fenzel and Hall was up 6-3.

They would carry that lead into the intermission having played a dominant offensive game throughout the second period.

The three goals allowed in the first half was a testament to a strong defensive performance by Hall in front of senior goalie Teagan Cohane. An All-State ice hockey forward, she was pressed into action when the Titans’ No. 1 keeper could not be there. Early in the second half she would be called on to make several big saves, and rose to the task.

Just over two minutes into the third it would be Leshem striking again for career goal 999. Kaitlynn Farrelly would get one back for the Eagles than a minute later with a shot that beat Cohane low to her left, but the senior fill-in goalie would then make a pair of big saves to preserve the lead.

With 2:53 to play, Leshem reached the 100-goal mark as she beat Salemi for the third time, setting off a series of high fives and chest bumps with her teammates.

“She is a rare player,” Hall head coach Kristen Mullady said of Leshem. I’ve had her for four years and every year she gets better.”

Mullady was also happy to see the milestone come in game one of Leshem’s senior season, saying it was remarkable that she had done it that early in her career.

Hall carried an 8-4 lead into the fourth before Ellie Hill cut it to a three-goal game. At that point it was the senior Gwiazdoski who took over the game and the offense, scoring a natural hat trick in just under two minutes. Her first came at 4:22 off a great individual move and then she did it again as the Titans controlled the draw and Gwiazdoski scored her fourth of the game at 3:56. Ninety seconds later she put the cherry on top of the sundae on an assist from Leshem to make it 11-5.

Schleif would close things out with :25 to play, working a great two-man game with teammate Kabakoff and sealed the opening day 12-5 win. “I am happy with the way we played defensively and I thought we did a great job shutting down their top players,” Mullady said after the win.

For Leshem the 100-goal pressure is off, and there are still bigger goals to accomplish. “I’d like for us to go farther in states this year and see us grow as a team.”

Game notes

• Leshem – who is going to Springfield College after Hall graduation – finished the game with three goals and an assist.
• Gwiazdoski led the offense with five goals, one assist and three draws.
• Schleif scored one goal and won five draws in the win.
• Cohane was credited with eight saves in the game.
• Kabakoff’s goal was the first of her varsity career.
• Hall is back to work Monday hosting Suffield, before welcoming Longmeadow, MA, on Wednesday and closing the week out at East Catholic on Thursday.

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