Moorestown falls to Ridgewood in girls' lacrosse
Midway through the second half, the turf field at Moorestown High School turned into a scene from The Perfect Storm.
Midway through the second half, the turf field at Moorestown High School turned into a scene from
The Perfect Storm
.
A slight breeze became raging gusts. And rain, which had held off for most of the game, poured down in sheets.
The wind was blowing hard against the Moorestown girls' lacrosse team. And it took the Quakers' momentum with it.
Moorestown held a two-goal advantage when the storm hit but was outscored, 6-0, in the final 17 minutes in a 12-8 loss to North Jersey rival Ridgewood on Saturday.
"The weather isn't an excuse," Moorestown coach Deanna Knobloch said. "They had to play in the same conditions we did."
True. But losses for Moorestown are so rare that it's hard not to think supernatural forces are in play when they happen. This was just the 35th loss in Knobloch's 25-year career as head coach of Moorestown, against 504 wins.
Conditions clearly didn't help Moorestown in the second half with the wind blowing in its opponent's favor.
But just as evident was the talent of Ridgewood, which has developed into arguably the Quakers' most formidable in-state rival.
Under similar conditions, the Maroons handed Moorestown a loss in the 2011 Tournament of Champions final. Last year, they snapped the Quakers' 88-game unbeaten streak (a streak that included three wins over Ridgewood) in a one-goal win in the regular season.
It's now a game both teams circle on the calendar, regardless of where it falls in the season.
"It's always really high competition," said junior midfielder Quinn Nicolai. "You always want to play this game for the seniors of the past - for the players who don't have a chance to play this game again - because they did so much to make this program what it is."
Nicolai recorded two goals and four assists, giving her 35 and 19, respectively, for the season. Three of Nicolai's four assists were on scores by senior Genie Santarpio, who scored a game-high four goals.
After Ridgewood (7-2) opened a 2-0 lead, Nicolai and Santarpio connected twice during a spurt in which the Quakers netted three goals in one minute to give them a 3-2 lead with 16 minutes, 47 seconds left in the first half.
Moorestown (8-2) largely controlled the game from that point until Santarpio's final goal gave Moorestown an 8-6 lead with 19:56 left.
After that, the skies opened up, and the Quakers couldn't maintain possession as Ridgewood scored six straight, including three goals by Lillie Kloak.
"We kept our composure," said Ridgewood coach Karla Mixon. "Moorestown is such a wonderful program. . . . This [game] has become a tradition. . . . We'll bend over backward to get this game scheduled every year, just because we think it's that important to play a team like Moorestown."
Ridgewood 5 7 - 12
Moorestown 6 2 - 8
Goals: R-Lillie Kloak 4, Alex Absey 3, Katie Bourque 2, Chelsea Trattner, Hannah Cermack, Nicole Macolino; M-Genie Santarpio 4, Quinn Nicolai 2, Annika Nissen, Robin Panzarella.
Saves: R-Casey Cole 6; M-Jess Goralski 7.