Benet Academy girls lacrosse comes from behind in the second half to seal the victory over Lyons Township in the sectional semifinal. This highlight is sponsored by BMO.
After defeating Mother McAuley in the sectional quarterfinals, Benet Academy girls lacrosse continues its playoff run against Lyons Township. The first-seeded Redwings hope to advance to their third straight sectional championship, but the Lions might have something to say about that.
Lyons Township off to a great start
Just a couple of minutes into the game, Lyons Township looks to strike early. Ashley Culin gets the goal to go and gives the Lions an early lead.
Lyons Township threatens again, as Caitlyn Curtin uses a screen to find some open space. She fires away with a Benet stick in her face, but that doesn’t stop her. The Lions are up 2-0, five minutes into the game.
Gigi Kurelko on the penalty restart turns off two defenders before firing a shot low for the goal. Benet gets on the board but still trails by one.
The Lions now setting up shop, as Anna Murphy hesitates before running towards the front of the net. She evades the Benet defender and gives Lyons Township a 3-1 lead.
About 30 seconds later, Benet works the ball around and it finds Peyton O’Neill. She glides through three Lions and slots one home for the goal. They are down one with 13 minutes left in the first.
Now we have another great sequence for Benet as they move the ball quickly and it finds a wide-open Madison Timmons. She wastes no time with the shot and gets the goal to tie it before the half.
Benet Academy takes the lead and doesn’t look back
Into the second now, and here goes O’Neill. She is going to take this one coast-to-coast while dodging and weaving through multiple defenders. She shoots with four Lions around her but gets the goal. Benet is up 4-3 and has its first lead of the game.
11 minutes to go now, and the Redwings once again use some good ball movement. It leads to Dagny Tombaugh cutting across the goal and sending one to the back of the net. Benet extends its lead to 5-3.
The Lions won’t go away just yet, as Lauren Kudia cuts in from the back of the net. She bursts past a Benet defender and is able to score with ease in front. Benet still leads 5-4 with seven minutes left in the game.
O’Neill looking for a hat trick on the penalty restart and she does, placing it just past the goalie’s reach. Benet’s lead is back to two with four minutes to go.
Redwings now looking to seal this one up. O’Neill passes one off to Tombaugh, who finds Jamie Weber who is back from injury. She scores on the quick shot and the Redwings go on to seal the 8-4 sectional semifinal victory. They will play Marist in the championship.
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