No. 7 Glenelg girls lacrosse establishes control early in 15-6 win over No. 13 Marriotts Ridge
Glenelg girls lacrosse has struggled at times this season playing with intensity at times early in games. Wednesday night against Marriotts Ridge, the Gladiators delivered the fast start they’ve been searching for.
After surrendering the opening goal less than a minute in, the No. 7 Gladiators regrouped and opened the floodgates. They scored nine straight goals in just over eight minutes and didn’t look back. The Gladiators closed out a 15-6 win over No. 13 Marriotts Ridge.
Glenelg (11-1, 6-0 Howard County) now controls its own destiny for the Howard County title with two regular-season games remaining.
“We are focused on the fundamentals,” senior Kamryn Henson said. “Our biggest thing is building off of every single game. Not going backward, we always want to go forward. The next practice we want to go forward from this performance. When we play Howard next week, we want to go forward from this performance.”
Glenelg’s offense fired on all cylinders. Five of those nine first-quarter goals came off assists. Senior Regan Kelleher spearheaded that effort with four of her game-high six assists in the opening frame. She consistently found teammates all over the field who moved off-ball and cut into the seams of the Mustangs’ defense.
“Whoever was in the middle was moving a lot, keeping the defenders occupied,” Kelleher said. “Working with each other, cutting off picks, using each other to get open and also not playing selfish, I love it. I just trust my teammates that every time they get the ball they’re going to do something with it.”
Marriotts Ridge’s defense tightened in the second, but the score remained lopsided at the break. Glenelg’s offense found its stride once again in the third and fourth, closing out an unselfish offensive performance.
Coach Alex Pagnotta said the Gladiators played their most complete game since an 8-7 win over California’s St. Ignatius on April 6. Year after year, the matchup with the Mustangs is highly anticipated. The meeting between the two storied programs often decides the county championship.
“It’s perfect timing to play so well,” Pagnotta said. “It’s also really good because you can throw out the records whenever we play Marriotts Ridge. Records really don’t matter, who’s on your team or who’s going where [to play in college]. It’s always going to be a good game. It was nice to have a little bit of comfort, continue to get some separation there. That’s a testament to them, rising to the occasion and really trying to embrace that pressure and using it as more of a motivator to try and keep moving forward.”
That sustained year-to-year excellence can often bring an added pressure. However, that’s not something Pagnotta and the Gladiators hide from. The second-year coach often recreates that pressure in practice to help alleviate any nerves on game day.
It’s also a delicate balance. The Gladiators embrace each win along the way, inching closer to securing a county championship. Yet, they also have a vision of a loftier goal, the program’s sixth state championship and first since 2018.
“We try and talk about pressure,” Pagnotta said. “We try and embrace it. We put a lofty goal. We put on emphasis on winning and wanting to win, but we work hard in practice to try and prepare for that. It’s all about repetition, not trying to do a bunch of different things. We really try to hone in on what we’re working on. We’re going to really focus on our offense, continue to pressure out on our defense and really work on our slides and see where we end up at the year.”
Glenelg — 9 1 2 3 — 15
Marriotts Ridge — 2 1 1 2 — 6
Goals: G- Maddie Ross 3, Emmy Dello Russo 3, Kamryn Henson 3, Ava Hernandez 3, Kayleigh White 2, Graceyn Brown 1; MR- Rachel Harper 3, Sarah Fitter, Chrish Vaxmonsky, Bella Boats. Assists: G- Regan Kelleher 6, Kayleigh White, Kamryn Henson, Ava Karbacka. Saves: G- Emily Altshuler 2, Gabby Barnard 1; MR- Kaelyn Krozy 2.