Blake junior Molly Wannen had the best vacation of her life during Spring Break. She visited Rome, Venice, Florence, Pompeii, and Assisi.
There was just one problem. The day she departed, her lacrosse team had a game. Without Wannen and three other Italy-bound starters, Blake lost to rival Sherwood in overtime.
Would the presence of the missing Bengals have made a difference?
Judging from Blake’s performance Wednesday at Sherwood in the 4A/3A West Region title game, the answer was a resounding, “si.”
With Wannen controlling the midfield and junior Sammy Allen dominating at attack, Blake rolled to a 15-6 victory and claimed its first region title in program history.
“It’s a completely different game with Molly on the field,” said Allen, who had five goals and three assists. “I play with her in field hockey, basketball and lacrosse. I know where she is and she knows where I am. Not having her is like missing half of me.”
The 5-foot-9 Wannen (four goals, one assist) took the draws and was a force on defense as she derailed several Sherwood (13-2) possessions with her quickness and long reach.
Wannen, defender Aimee Dechter and goalie Kelly Arguelo (12 saves) helped limit a potent Sherwood offense, averaging 13.2 goals per game, to a season-low. Top scorer Michele Abbott, who entered with 54 goals, scored just twice.
“We couldn’t get through midfield in transition and that’s our strength,” said Sherwood coach Mitch Rosenfeld. “We came in on a roll, but we couldn’t do it today.”
Blake (13-2) scored the final two goals of the first half to grab a 7-4 lead, then tallied the first three after intermission to take command. Senior Rachel Schexnayder scored two key goals in the half and the Blake defense did the rest.
“This was the best game we’ve played in two years,” said Blake coach Nicky Barrett. “Our game plan was to deny the ball. We knew if they made catches, they would make plays. We didn’t do anything special. We just came with a lot of aggression.”
So how does this compare to Italy?
“I loved the goldolas,” said Wannen. “They were so cool.”
Hot Wings
» Blake’s postgame celebration was at Hooters restaurant.
» Other Blake players on the Italy trip were Wannen’s freshman sister, Nicky Wannen, Jess Stewart, and Alicia Galeano.
» Sherwood junior center Aubrey Mirkin had three goals. The Warriors are 26-4 the last two seasons, but 0-2 in region championship games.
