The Aliso Girls’ Lacrosse team is currently 6-7 overall and battling to become first in the league. As of March 26, they have only lost one game in league play to the Beckmen Patriots, making their league record 2-1. They are 3-2 in home games and 3-5 in away games, but they are confident in their ability to improve their record.
On March 10, the girls played their final game before the start of the league. They competed against the Valencia Tigers and crushed them in an overwhelming 12-2 victory. Luna Kitsu (11) dominated offensively with four goals and one assist. Defensively, Regan Swindall (11) carried the team with two blocked goals and six caused turnovers. This game put the girls in high hopes of a competitive league record.
In recent years, the girls have competed in the harsh South Coast league. Schools like San Clemente and San Juan Hills compete in this league and have had overwhelming success in CIF. Unfortunately, Aliso’s record caused them to be bumped down to a slightly less competitive Sea View league for this season.
March 11 was their first game in their new league. They played the Mission Viejo Diablos, and just as expected, they crushed them with a 20-8 victory. In the first half, the Wolverines scored 11 goals, while the Diablos only scored five. They kept this momentum into the second half and scored nine, and the defense pushed even harder and only let Mission Viejo score three goals.
Similar to their first league game, the girls destroyed the Capo Valley Cougars on March 13. In this game, the Wolverines were incredibly active on both offense and defense. On the offensive end, Zoey Roth (12) led the team with three goals and nine assists. Defensively, Olivia Carbajal (12) led the team with four blocked goals and two caused turnovers. The final score was 21-2.
After the success of the first two league games, Head Coach Bob Mezeul says, “Our expectation is to continue to dominate league opponents and win the Sea View league.”
After the first two league games, the Wolverines took a short break from league and competed in two competitive non-league games. The first game was against the Trabuco Hills Stallions, a team in the South Coast League. Unfortunately, they lost but put up a good fight until the end, with the final score being 11-16. The next day, the girls played the University Trojans. Like Trabucco, the Trojans were tough and didn’t lose sight of their win. The final score in that game was 6-13.
Coach Mezeul reminds his athletes that by playing tough teams, “By playing more challenging opponents outside of league, it reminds us that we have work to do if we expect to go deep in the playoffs and bring a division championship to ANHS.”
March 25 marked the Wolverines’ return to league games. They played the Beckmen Patriots. The Patriots are the toughest in the Sea View League, so the Wolverines anticipated a tough game. Seniors Hannah Mottaghi and Zoey Roth tried to help Aliso the best they could, but unfortunately, it was not enough to conquer the Patriots. The final score was 10-13.
Midfielder Mariko Honda (10) says, “Beckmen are good opponents. We put up a good fight, and we are coming back to win next time.”
Girls’ Lacrosse’s next league game is against the Dana Hills Dolphins. After that, they rematch every team in the league to see if they will have the opportunity to make it to CIF.
