If the parameters of a sports dynasty are consistent excellence and annual runs toward ultimate glory, the Christian Brothers Academy girls lacrosse team fit those parameters quite well.
When the Brothers defeated Penfield 10-5 Saturday at SUNY-Cortland, it was the team’s second state Class A championship in three years and fourth this decade, counting the titles won in 2011 in Class C and 2013 in Class B.
Even if the joy of winning a state championship was familiar, senior Olivia Penoyer said that this title was more of a surprise than the one she was a part of two seasons ago.
“This is a different feeling,” said Penoyer. “In 2016 we expected it. Here, we were younger and had no real expectations. We knew what we could do, but we focused on smaller goals and gave a 100 percent team effort.
For CBA head coach Doug Sedgwick, it came down to the way all of the players got along and worked together.
“The secret sauce was chemistry,” said Sedgwick. “That will trump everything else.”
To take the last step on this state championship journey, CBA had to be both tough and patient against the Patriots, working hard for good scoring chances and counting on a consistent defense that ably protected a fragile lead most of the afternoon.
“This is the mark of a great team, that we were good at adapting to everything,” said senior Grace Hulslander.
Penfield, who had knocked off reigning state champion Pittsford in the Section V semifinals, was an unlikely state finalist, having survived losing two players to cards to beat North Rockland 9-8 in overtime the day before.
Having gone through so much drama, the Patriots weren’t fazed when Hulslander, so crucial to the Brothers’ late surge in its state semifinal win over West Islip, hit back-to-back goals in the game’s first five minutes.
Instead, Penfield tied it, 2-2, on goals by Madigan Lublin and Nina Nesselbush, and with its long possessions and patience controlled the game’s tempo throughout the first half.
Anna Ziemba struck twice in a 55-second span late in the half, pushing CBA back in front, and then assisted on Gracie Britton’s goal after Nesselbush scored for a second time.
So it was 5-3 at halftime, CBA far from safe, yet still in front and feeling even better after Tatum Kohlbrenner added to that lead 2;20 into the second half.
Near the midway point of the half with the score 6-4, Ziemba was injured chasing a draw, but seconds later Iris Vinal stopped Shannon Burdick point-blank, a save that allowed CBA to get the ball back.
Again with the ball, the Brothers took a time-out with 11:33 left to deliberate how it would attack the homestretch.
As it turned out, it was with aggression, with Olivia Penoyer scoring 93 seconds after the timeout, followed by a long defensive stand where, again, Ali Anderson, Kathleen Harrigan, Paige Alletzhauser and Avery Penoyer blanketed the forwards and forced a turnover.
Sedgwick said that the back line’s ability to adjust to opposing attacks, along with the timely takeover by Vinal in the net, made a big difference throughout the Brothers’ post-season run.
When Hulslander finished off a fast break by scoring with 5:33 left and fellow senior Claire Jeschke converted twice more in the closing minutes, another state title was locked away in the Brothers’ possession.
