AURORA | Once the Regis Jesuit girls lacrosse team truly played together, it finally found its rhythm against Grandview Wednesday evening.
In the midst of a downpour at Lou Kellogg Stadium, the Raiders banded together at the start of the second half with a burst that provided them the separation they needed from the Wolves in a 16-8 victory to cap the regular season.
Regis Jesuit got four goals apiece from juniors Maddie Ferguson and Sidney Weigand on its way to a win in the battle of playoff-bound city teams that both came into the game rolling. Coach Kathryn Ames’ Raiders (12-2) — the Continental League champion — take a 12-game winning streak into their regular season finale Friday.
“Grandview is a really tough team and I’m glad we played them now,” Ames said. “We have to learn from this. We’ve had some games where we’re just cleaning up, but this one was back and forth a ton.
“It’s a good time to have a harder game, plus the weather and we have injuries, so it was about pushing through and learning for sure.”
Coach Kevin Mortimer’s Grandview team fell short in its quest to double last season’s win total, but lost for just the second time in its last seven games.
Freshman Mandy Brockamp tallied four goals for the Wolves (11-4).
Regis Jesuit gained the separation it needed with a four-goal burst in a span of just 2 minutes, 16 seconds, in the second half that pushed its two-goal edge to 11-5.
Senior Mariah Daley got the streak going with her third goal of the contest, which was followed by a fastbreak score in which freshman Gracie Weigand found senior Maya Fair with a pinpoint pass for a point blank score.
Sidney Weigand, whose work on draws helped the Raiders gain key possessions, tallied the next score and Ferguson capped the burst with a free shot goal.
Regis Jesuit’s lead next dipped below six the rest of the way as it turned back a Grandview team that lost last season’s meeting by just one goal and came in determined to win the rematch.
“We played our game strong in the first half, but made adjustments at halftime,” Mortimer said. “We had some critical turnovers in the second half and just couldn’t put it together.”
The girls lacrosse regular season ends Saturday, with the top 20 teams based on RPI then seeded in the playoff bracket.
Courtney Oakes is Sentinel Sports Editor. Reach him at 303-750-7555 or sports@sentinelcolorado.com. Twitter: @aurorasports. FB: Sentinel Prep Sports
REGIS JESUIT 16, GRANDVIEW 8
Score by halves:
Grandview 4 4 — 8
Regis Jesuit 6 10 — 16
SCORING
First half: Regis Jesuit — Mariah Daley, 24:20; Grandview — Mandy Brockamp, 22:41; Grandview — Dani Armitage, 19:21; Regis Jesuit — Maya Fair, 18:40; Grandview — Holly Crawford, 17:30; Regis Jesuit — Sidney Weigand, 12:19; Regis Jesuit — Weigand, 11:45; Regis Jesuit — Daley, 9:34; Grandview — Brockamp, 1:21; Regis Jesuit — Maddie Ferguson, 0:46
Second half: Regis Jesuit — Fair, 24:10; Grandview — Armitage, 22:51; Regis Jesuit — Daley, 21:43; Regis Jesuit — Fair (Gracie Weigand), 21:22; Regis Jesuit — Sidney Weigand, 20:36; Regis Jesuit — Ferguson, 19:27; Grandview — Brockamp, 10:21; Regis Jesuit — Gracie Weigand, 6:56; Regis Jesuit — Ferguson, 6:11; Grandview — Brockamp, 2:31; Regis Jesuit — Cate Lord, 2:15; Grandview — Matthews, 1:20; Regis Jesuit — Sidney Weigand, 1:08; Regis Jesuit — Ferguson, 0:55
