Central lacrosse gets revenge on Chelmsford, advances to Round of 8 | Sports

LAWRENCE — The only thing standing between the Central Catholic girls lacrosse squad and a second consecutive state quarterfinal berth was a Merrimack Valley Conference nemesis.

The Raiders shook off a couple regular-season losses to MVC champ Chelmsford, opening up a four-goal halftime advantage Wednesday evening before walking off with a 9-7 victory in a Division 1 Round of 16 matchup.

In the quarters, eight-seeded Central (17-5) will travel to play No. 1 Lincoln-Sudbury (18-2) at a time to be determined.

“Honestly, (those losses by a combined 11 goals) gave us motivation,” said Central junior Abby Yfantopulos, who had a team-high three goals and a pair of assists. “They may have beaten us in the regular season, but playoffs are what really matter. So, we came into this with the mindset we could end their season if we played as hard as we could. and we did that.”

Scoring five of the game’s first six goals helped the Raiders set the early tone. Each of Central’s goals were scored by a different player, highlighting the team’s balance at a good time of the season.

“Mentally, we got locked in,” Central coach Vanessa Pino said. “We knew we didn’t want to lose to a team three times. This was more of a do-or-die situation. We had a great practice yesterday. We worked as a team for two hours straight, and our main focus today was team work and grittiness.”

Yfantopulos got the Raiders started off an assist from Nicolette Licare 2:36 into the match. After the Lions (15-5) tied the score on the first of three Caitlin Walsh goals, Central controlled the remainder of the half.

In a 10-9 loss to Chelmsford in a May 22 match that saw the Lions overcome a two-goal deficit with less than 6 minutes left, it was Licare and Kerri Finneran doing the damage for Central, combining for eight goals. While both connected in the first half Thursday, Kierstyn Zinter and Kiara Edmunds also got into the action.

“We knew there was going to be high pressure on Kerri and Nicolette,” Pino said. “We can just expect that because they’re two of the top players in our state. So, we encourage the girls, and empower them by telling them that each of them deserves to be here and are capable of scoring.”

Chelmsford rallied in the second half, cutting the lead to two on three occasions, but the Raiders answer with a couple goals from Yfantopulos and one each from Edmunds and Licare. Central’s final goal came from Licare with 2:34 left off an assist from Jacqueline Tattan for a 9-6 lead.

While the Lions did find the back of the net six times after intermission, they were also stymied five times by freshman goalie Anne Cashman, who was making the start in place of her older sister Grace, a senior.

“She’s great,” Pino said of Anne, who made six saves. “Actually, she was the JV goalie this season, but we saw her skill and her growth in each game. We thought she would best fit for us in these high-energy games. We had to take a leap of faith and go with what our heart was feeling. We had full confidence in Annie and we’re really proud of her and her sister.”

Finally getting a win over Chelmsford should provide confidence for what could be three more games. Last year, the Raiders season ended with a loss to Wellesley in the quarters.

“We just have to keep our goal on winning a state championship,” Yfantopulos said. “We work hard in practice with that in mind, and it’s getting better every day. It’s motivating us to be the best team we can be.”

Central Catholic 9, Chelmsford 7

Division 1 Round of 16

Goals: Chelmsford — Caitlin Walsh 3, Amelia Kelley 2, Olivia Hall 2; CC — Abby Yfantopulos 3, Nicolette Licare 2, Kiara Edmunds 2, Kierstyn Zinter, Kerri Finneran

Assists: Chelmsford — Maggie Loeber, Jillian Martin; CC — Jacqueline Tattan 2, Yfantopulos 2, Licare

Saves: Chelmsford — Madelin Dunbar 8; CC — Anne Cashman 6

Chelmsford (15-5): 1 6 — 7

Central Catholic (17-5): 5 4 — 9