The Eastlake High School girls lacrosse team finished 17-2 last season, including an 8-0 record in Mesa League play, while advancing to the semifinal round of the San Diego Section Division I playoffs.
While Titan head coach Robert Blas indicated this season is more of a rebuilding year for his team, Eastlake should still be considered one of the top teams in its division and among the teams to beat in league play.
“Right now we’re in the middle of the pack in the division rankings,” Blas said. “We have a lot of seniors and a lot of underclassmen. We’re hoping to get the underclassmen some experience and that the seniors can provide leadership.
“We’ve had a tough non-league schedule that will hopefully prepare us for league and the playoffs.”
The Titans improved to 3-0 in league play, 6-5 overall, after defeating host Bonita Vista, 17-9, on Monday.
Top returners include co-captains Cori Montero, Kika Funk, Marissa Garcia and Arianna Lorenzana along with Erika Farrage and Angie Garcia.
Blas lists Kera Hernandez, Kamdyn Purvis, Noelle Ertzner and goalkeeper Sofia Howe as the team’s impact newcomers.
Farrage led Eastlake in Monday’s game with four goals while Montero scored three times. Yuleni Zendejas, Tess Johnson and Purvis were each credited with two goals.
Hernandez, Funk, Ertzner and Katherine Lumahan each scored one goal.
Bonita Vista (1-2 in league play, 8-7 overall) trailed 9-2 at halftime before rallying to narrow the score to 9-5 early in the second half before the Titans once again took control of the game.
Making strides
The Castle Park High School girls lacrosse program expected to show much improvement this season. The result of Wednesday’s game at Chula Vista High School seems to underscore that after visiting Castle Park recorded a 9-8 victory to lay claim to the schools’ Battle of the Greek Goddesses rivalry trophy.
Chula Vista won last year’s inaugural trophy game 17-4.
“This means a great deal to us but the season is not over yet,” CPHS head coach Chris Kryjewski said after Wednesday’s milestone victory. “Mar Vista is No. 1 in our league right now. We play Mar Vista and Chula Vista both at our place in the second round. The league title is gong to come through one of those three schools.”
After finishing 2-6 in league play last year, Castle Park (4-1 in league, 6-7 overall) finds itself in the middle of a championship race this season. The Trojans topped visiting San Ysidro, 19-2, in league play on Monday.
Ilinani Roche earned MVP honors in Wednesday’s game by scoring four goals. Celeste Preciado and Villalobos each scored twice.
Priscilla Betancourt led Chula Vista with four goals while Sylvia Barba scored three goals.
Berenice Villalobos led the Trojans with six goals in Monday’s rout while Allison Velasco and Roche each scored three goals.
“We wouldn’t be where we are without the coaching staff we have,” Kryjewski said. “We’re better than we’ve ever been. We’ve improved in catching, shooting, being able to set up plays, fielding … we’ve already scored more goals than we did all last season.”
Castle Park finished 0-17 in 2016, Kryjewski’s first year at the helm. The Trojans finished 2-15 in 2017 and 6-14 last year. The team has already matched last year’s win total with five games left in the regular season.
The Battle of the Greek Goddesses rivalry game is sponsored by the Kiwanis Club of Chula Vista. The winning team receives $300 while the runner-up team receives $200.
Castle Park High School principal Vicky Mitrovich, who serves as club secretary, presented the checks to the head coaches of both schools.
“While we’ve had the Kiwanis Bowl football game between Hilltop and Chula Vista for years, our club decided to do something for female sports,” Mitrovich explained. “It’s a perpetual trophy to motivate the teams and support female sports. Lacrosse is a new sport; it’s a great rivalry between the schools.”
Photo Gallery by Phillip Brents
Castle Park 9, Chula Vista 8
Photo Gallery by Phillip Brents
Eastlake 17, Bonita Vista 9
Metro Conference Boys Lacrosse Standings
Mesa League
Eastlake Titans 3-0, 8-5
Bonita Vista Barons 2-1, 5-9
Hilltop Lancers 2-2, 8-7
Otay Ranch Mustangs 0-4, 0-12
Wednesday, April 17
Eastlake 14, Bonita Vista 2
Hilltop 13, Otay Ranch 5
Friday, April 19
Eastlake 8, Granite Hills 7
South Bay League
Olympian Eagles 6-0, 11-4
Mar Vista Mariners 2-2, 4-9
Mater Dei Catholic 1-2, 2-4
Chula Vista Spartans 0-5, 0-10
Wednesday, April 17
Olympian 6, Mar Vista 5
SEALS SWEEP MAMMOTH, CLINCH HOME PLAYOFF GAME
The San Diego Seals officially clinched the first home playoff game in team history following Friday’s 12-7 National Lacrosse League win over the Colorado Mammoth in front of 5,121 spectators at Pechanga Arena San Diego. The Seals will host the Western Division semifinal game against an opponent to be determined on Monday, May 6, at 7:30 p.m.
The Seals completed the season-series sweep of the Mammoth on Friday night as Dan Dawson and Kyle Buchanan each collected three goals and four assists and Casey Jackson tacked on six points with four goals and two assists.
After a back-and-forth first half in which the hosts built a 5-4 lead, the Seals were dominant in the second half by outscoring the Mammoth 7-3. Jackson led the Seals’ offensive efforts with four goals, including the franchise’s first penalty shot, while forwards Buchanan and Dawson each finished the night with seven points.
“Both teams competed really hard tonight,” San Diego general manager and head coach Patrick Merrill said. “We knew they were going to be a little bit desperate; they were a little banged up on the front end. They had a couple of their bigger offensive guys out, so they were going to push the pace a little bit. They’re a young team and they’re athletic. I thought we did a pretty good job of weathering the storm and wearing them down as the game went on.”
The Seals’ special teams prevailed in the win. The man-down team killed four penalties, including a five-minute major, and added two short-handed goals. The power play unit scored four man-up goals in the victory.
“I thought our special team’s were really good,” Merrill said. “Our short-man team was good, especially in the first half, to kill that five-minute penalty, and then obviously getting that huge goal shorthanded was nice to break that up. It was definitely a boost that we built off of.”
Goaltender Frank Scigliano stopped 45 shots in the win, including all 16 shots in the fourth quarter. San Diego’s defense held Colorado to three goals in the second half to complete the three-game sweep.
The Seals host the Buffalo Bandits in the regular-season finale on Saturday, April 27, at 7 p.m. For more information, visit the website at SealsLax.com.
