In a statement win, the Conard girls lacrosse team defeated Staples High School on Saturday in West Hartford, 19-7.

Sports reporting is sponsored by Keating Agency Insurance

By Paul Palmer

The Conard girls lacrosse team has put together a spectacular regular season.

It seems that fact has escaped the attention of some as the Red Wolves stand at 14-1 on the season. The CIAC poll has them ranked fifth in Class LL entering play Saturday and the Gametime CT poll placed them sixth – ranking them for the first time this season. Saturday they hosted Staples (Westport) – ranked fifth by Gametime CT and sixth in the CIAC with a chance to make a statement.

The Red Wolves did just that, dominating the Wreckers in every phase of the game  in a 19-7 win. “Staples is a great team and this was a great win playing Conard lacrosse,” said head coach Meg Cersosimo. “We can play with anyone when we play to our standards.”

Conard scored early and often, getting three goals in the opening 1:37, with the first coming less than one minute into play. In every aspect Conard was better Saturday, winning the draws, creating offense, goalkeeping, and playing tight defense.

The Wolves’ first goal was scored by Ashley Gorman just :56 in. Thirty seconds later, Jacqueline Capone beat her defender and fired the shot past goalie Alexandra Kim.

What came next was the perfect example of why Conard has been so successful this year. Senior Olivia Hole took the draw, and sophomore CC Cersosimo picked up the ball, carried it into the scoring area ,and fired home the winner, just 11 seconds after Capone’s goal. Hole, Cersosimo, and Ashley Gorman are a strong draw unit that the Red Wolves use to generate offense.

“We learned in the Amity game, (the team’s only loss), that draw control wins games,” said Hole. “Our draw team is smart and we know when to change things up.”

Staples took a timeout after the third goal and came out more composed, and scored their first goal of the game when Chloe Smith found the back of the net after a long possession. Courtney McPhee – known more for her passing and defense – scored the next goal for Conard, and Staples answered to make it 4-2 less than seven minutes in.

The Wolves would then score the next three goals in the period starting with Cersosimo and Hole hooking up down low for the goal. Then it was Cersosimo scoring for the 6-2 lead, and Nicole Gorman getting her first with :35 to play on an 8-meter shot.

It wasn’t all about offense for Conard in the opening 12 minutes. Their defense was doing a solid job of keeping Staples from getting any good looks at the net, and covering the cutters looking for space. In goal Maya Nanayakkara had two big saves, with the final one coming with just :10 to play on Noelle Tybur.

“Our D is starting to gel and they are constantly talking.” Conard’s coach said. “We get a lot of pressure on the ball from our midfielders as well.”

The start of the second quarter saw more of the same from the Conard offense. Cersosimo – who scored seven goals – carried in from the top of the arc, absorbed the hits, and scored :48 into the period. Then it was the defense’s turn to step up and they did, keeping Staples scoreless and shotless on a long Wreckers possession in the offensive zone.

Hole would get the ninth goal for Conard when she came carried in from the left side of the goalie, moved into a great shooting position and fired in the winner. Hole would also score the next goal of the game, coming when Ashley Gorman made a run on goal but was turned back by the defenders. She found Hole alone on the other side and delivered the assist.

“The entire unit of seven (on offense) are space creators,” said Meg Cersosimo. “We work off that to open space on the other side and create great options.

Conard’s 11th score would come at 7:09 of the second when they ran a clear out play for CC Cersosimo. She was initially blocked off by a defender from going outside, but she spun inside and beat the goalie Kim. After the two teams exchanged goals, it was Nanayakkara coming up big on a save on the 8-meter try by Staples. At the other end, Hole scored a nice goal when she took the pass from Ashley Gorman with her back to the net. She spun and fired hitting nothing but net to make it 13-3 with 2:47 to play in the second.

Kali Knesich would get one back for the Wreckers when Smith found her in front with a nice pass from behind the net.

The final goal of the second came with just :18 to play and again it was Cersosimo finding Hole – this time coming out from behind the net, and converting the pass to make it 14-4 at intermission.

Hole and Cersosimo form a formidable duo on offense at times seeming like they were reading each other’s minds. “Since last year Liv has taken me under her wing  and that includes on the field,” said CC Cersosimo, who had five first-half goals. “We see the field and the game the same way and know what we want,” Hole, who also had five first-half goals, said of the connection.

One of the game’s most outstanding efforts came just 90 seconds into the third quarter. Nicole Gorman had the ball and moved left to right about 15 yards out. She then fired the ball back to the left side of the net for a brilliant goal.

Cersosimo and Hole would connect again at 3:20 for Conard’s 16th goal on the day. Conard also displayed one of its most dangerous weapons in the second half – the speed of defender Annabel Tracy. Multiple times she got Conard out from under pressure by simply outrunning multiple players from Staples. Her speed and ability to carry the ball and dodge defenders set Conard up several times on offense.

“She has great field awareness and is great at finding space and making the connections,” Meg Cersosimo said of her junior player. The efforts are also appreciated by her teammates who see the hard work and often are the recipients of the effort.

“To have someone that can blow through it is extremely useful,” said Hole. “She’s a secret weapon.”

That weapon was on full display setting up the 19th and final goal for Conard in the fourth quarter. Tracy started behind her own net and ran through all seven attack and midfielders from Staples using speed, quickness, and stick control to 25 yards out in the offensive end. Conard set up the attack from there and after working the ball around, it was Cersosimo getting her final score. She worked the left side of the net and moved in looking to make a pass. There was no cutter so she pulled the ball down, put her head down, and muscled her way into the middle of the cage and scored.

Staples added a couple of late 8-meter goals, but Nanayakkara had the last word, making a save on the Wreckers final 8-meter try with :15 to play to seal the 19-7 win.

Conard has just one game left – the annual showdown with Hall. That game is Thursday at 4 p.m. as part of a doubleheader between the schools with the boys teams meeting at 6 p.m.

The Titans, under Kristen Mullady, stand at 10-2 and have a five-game win streak heading into a meeting with Northwest Catholic on Monday. Hall is ranked eighth in Class L entering the final week of the regular season.

Game notes

The win over Staples was the 1oth victory in a row for Conard. They have not lost in one month. The closest any team has come to beating them was Simsbury, which lost by six goals to the Red Wolves.

During the 10-game win streak they are scoring an average of 17.4 goals per game while giving up just 4.8 goals per game. The most they have allowed in a single game is seven goals – to Staples and  Simsbury. Five teams have been held to four goals or fewer during the win streak.

Conard scoring vs. Staples:

• Cersosimo 7-3
• Hole 6-1
• Ashley Gorman 2-1
• Nicole Gorman 2-0
• Capone 1-0
• McPhee 1-0

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