We’re at Streamwood High School, where The Valley Co-Op girls lacrosse team is preparing for a sectional quarterfinal matchup against the Burlington Central Rockets. The Valley enters having won two of their last three games. The winner will move on to the sectional semifinals against Naperville North, who escaped with a 9-7 win over Geneva. This highlight is sponsored by BMO.
Burlington Central gets off to a fast start
Early on in the first, this is Lily Kratz approaching from behind the net. She gets the inside step on her defender and fires the ball right by the goalie. Burlington Central jumps off to a roaring start and leads 3-0 in the first quarter.
Moments later, Madelyn Mangienello finds Hermione Kerr in front of the net, and she bounces this one through some traffic for the goal. The Rockets are up 5-2 as the first quarter closes.
Ella Guzaski gets The Valley back in the game
Now in the second quarter, Kate Madden shows some burst to get by her defender, she tosses it ahead to Ella Guzaski, and she goes down low for the score. That’s a hat trick for Guzaski in the first half. The Valley is back within one at 5-4.
Just a minute later, Madden displays some fancy footwork to get past the defense again, but this time she finishes the play herself with this tough shot in traffic. That one ties the game up at five in the second quarter.
The Valley offense is rolling. Madden has the ball again. She tosses it ahead to Sydney Shield and fights through the contact and gets the goal to go. Shield has a hat trick, and The Valley now has an 8-5 lead.
Back the other way. Burlington Central needs some momentum. Kratz fights to get in front of the crease. She gets a stop on the defense and shoots, but Venny Ramireddy is there for the save. She keeps The Valley’s 8-6 lead intact.
With less than a minute left in the half, The Valley is looking for one more score. Sydney Shield finds Guzaski cutting in the middle, who fires the ball into the back of the net. The Valley scores eight goals in the second quarter and heads into halftime with a 10-6 lead.
Shield and Madden add hat tricks to help The Valley advance
In the second half, The Valley offense stays hot. Madden connects with Guzaski over the middle again, and she sends a bouncing shot through the defense for another goal. That is goal number six for Guzaksi, and The Valley lead is now 11-6. A 9-1 run since the end of the first quarter.
With time dwindling in the third, Sammy Roper passes to Madden in traffic over the middle. She uses her height and throws a shot right over the defense for the score. It’s a hat trick for Madden as The Valley Co-Op goes on to win the game 15-8, advancing to the sectional semifinal for a rematch against Naperville North.
For more prep sports highlights, visit the Naperville Sports Weekly page.
