Lady Jags Defeat Seneca Valley in Battle of Germantown
The Northwest Lady Jags extended their winning streak over cross-town rival Seneca Valley to six games with a victory on Monday night. The Lady Jags bounced back from a tough 11-10 loss, their second of the season, at the hands of Watkins Mill last Wednesday, by pounding the Lady Eagles 16-3, to extend their record to 8-2.
The Lady Jags were led by junior Brooke Mandel, who netted five goals in the victory. Northwest had two other players with multiple goals in the game. Seniors Kelly Miller and Katie Palmiere had three goals apiece. Palmiere pitched in with five assists while Miller also had two assists.
Two of Seneca Valley’s goals came from the stick of sophomore attacker Lexi Opdenaker. Seneca’s third goal came as junior Dini Khiangte worked a ball from mid-field into the attack area and zipped a shot past the Northwest goalie.
In all eight Jaguars scored in the contest, juniors Summer Jacobs and Sydney Gabitzer had one goal each, sophomore Julia Brock had a goal and two shots, while freshman Ali Rosenberg and senior Madeline Gerardi had a goal apiece.
The now 8-2 Lady Jags are poised for success as the post season nears in just two weeks. They will be on the road for their next two games, the first is Wednesday at 7-2 Churchill and then at 3-6 Blake on Friday. The Lady Jags will finish the regular season with two home games, hosting 1-8 Einstein on Tuesday, May 3 and 2-6 Richard Montgomery on Friday, May 6.
“The plan from here on out is to remain calm and display self-control out there and not take any stupid fouls,” said Northwest Head Coach Holly Klopfer. “Play to the best of our ability, making smart passes and smart cuts, and just to not rush anything.”
Klopfer said that she would be looking to seniors Kelly Miller and Madeline Gerardi to lead the attack and keep up the offense while leaning on defensive leaders sophomore Kat Dingwall and senior Brooke Wallmark to step. “We have a solid lineup all the way through; we will need all of them to step up their game as we prepare for the post season.”
As for Seneca Valley, the very young Lady Screamin’ Eagles continue to search for their first win. “We have a very young team, only three seniors,” said Head Coach Molly Gillespie, “but we have a lot of sophomores that are showing a bunch of potential. Lexi Opdenacker had two excellent goals tonight. I have a lot to work with in the future.”
Gillespie said that the team knew it would be a learning season from the beginning and the team’s main goal of improving on last year’s 2-11 record remains a possibility as the schedule makers have allowed the Eagles to play teams close their level of play at the end of the season. “We still have a chance to do that, with four games left,” she said. “We have Rockville on Wednesday, and they have the same record as we do. But we still have bring our A-game.”
Indeed, three of the final four teams the Lady Eagles will face have losing records, and two, like Seneca Valley, are still searching for their first win of the season. The Lady Eagles will host 0-9 Rockville on Wednesday and go on the road to play 4-5 Paint Branch on Saturday afternoon. They will finish the season with two home games, hosting 4-4 Wheaton on Tuesday, May 3 and 0-8 Kennedy on Thursday, May 5.
Captions:
Top: Northwest’s senior attacker Kelly Miller (6) fires a shot that would get past Seneca Valley goalie for one of Miller’s three goals in the victory. She is defended by Seneca Valley’s junior defender Kim Mai (5).
Next: Northwest’s junior Brooke Mandel (4) fires one of the five goals she scored in Monday’s 16-3 victory over Seneca Valley.
Next: Seneca Valley sophomore midfielder Alexis Pulliam (14) carries the ball through midfield and is defended by Northwest’s junior midfielder Summer Jacobs (2).
Next: Northwest’s senior middie Madeline Gerardi (20) streaks toward the goal for a shot during Monday’s victory.
Next: Seneca Valley junior Dini Khiangte (10) drives the lane and puts a shot past Northwest goalie, freshman Katherine Jones (25) and middie Brooke Mandel (4) late in the Monday’s game.
Photos by Germantown Pulse.