Heading into tournament with only 15 players, the girls varsity lacrosse team proved that good things come in small sizes. This year, the team consisted of six seniors, six juniors, one sophomore and two freshmen.

Starting with tryouts at the beginning of the season, the high school lacrosse program faced smaller numbers with only 43 girls in total instead of the usual 60. As a result, the program had to make a few adjustments.

This year, the varsity team added two new players to their roster and welcomed back all returning players from last year.

“The reason we have such a small team is a combination of tryout numbers, and also, the coaches want people to actually get playing time. So if you were on the fence at tryouts, you may stay on junior varsity in order to get the experience of playing in a game,” said senior Katie Terranova.

“I was looking for aggressive, athletic players. You can teach stick skills, but you can’t teach speed or determination,” said varsity coach EJ Kluge.

Both the players and coach agreed having less players on the team was a benefit.

“I think it’s better having a smaller team because we are all more connected with each other,” said senior Olivia Lucier.

“We know that we can depend on everybody,” said Terranova. “We know that when every single person gets in the game, they can perform. Right now it hasn’t been a problem; we’re all in very good shape, and we run and condition so that we can play the whole game.”

With 12 out of the 15 players as returning upperclassmen, the season was about refining skills and incorporating new players into the experienced team.

“I like being an underclassmen because I’m able to look up to the upperclassmen and surround myself with good players,” said sophomore Amy Cunningham. “All of the upperclassmen were so nice and welcoming this year and last year, which makes the whole experience even better.”

The team used their small size and returning experience to their advantage to become more cohesive on the field and improve upon the previous season.

“I think this year we are finally clicking on attack, we have a good strong and smart line of defense and an incredible goalie, which plays a huge part in our success,” said Cunningham.

Kluge agreed that the added athletic ability impacted the team in a positive way.

“Another large part of our success is elevated expectations from the players. They are competitive and willing to work hard to succeed,” said Kluge.

On Wednesday, June 6, the girls fell 15-14 to number two seed Ipswich in the Division 2 North Semi-Finals.

“I think we did well. We made a lot of accomplishments and exceeded the expectations,” said freshman Anna Downs. “I think we played hard, and everyone really fought until the end. It was really close, and I don’t think it was anything we did wrong. We really tried our best.”