Glenelg girls lacrosse was buzzing with momentum ahead by five late in the first quarter of Friday night’s Class 2A state semifinal against Kent Island. However, the weather had other ideas, and the game was delayed for nearly two hours because of thunderstorms.
While that prolonged delay could’ve sapped the juice out of the No. 9 Gladiators, they ensured it did not. Glenelg didn’t sit down the duration of the delay, singing, dancing and enjoying each other’s company. Toby Keith’s “Courtesy of the Red White and Blue” was the main karaoke song of choice, being played at least five times.
The Gladiators activity and energy throughout that time ensured they were ready when the teams resumed play. Then sixth-seeded Glenelg continued to pour it on and dominated second-seeded Kent Island in an 18-7 win.
Glenelg will face top-seeded Manchester Valley in a rematch of last year’s state semifinal at Stevenson University’s Mustang Stadium at a time and date to be announced.
“We came off the bus and we were really excited for this game,” Glenelg junior Kaitlyn Hill said. “After the delay, we went in the locker room, and we never stopped. We were having a dance party in there. But we also knew we had a game still to play, and we were focused on our mission. We knew when we came on this field again, we had to continue to roll and get more goals and caused turnovers.”
The Gladiators’ unwavering passion and energy throughout that stoppage is emblematic of their late-season surge. Glenelg (16-3) has scored at least 18 goals in each of its past five games. It has continually preached the value of off-ball movement and consistent motion in practice, and it has paid dividends.
Without one true powerhouse offensive threat, Glenelg effectively rotates the ball and utilizes all of its offensive weapons. That was evident throughout the state semifinal as eight Gladiators scored and eight of their 18 goals were assisted.
Graceyn Brown and Hill led the charge each with four goals and an assist as the Gladiators aggressively dodged throughout and converted on several 8-meter opportunities.
“We work on that a lot,” Brown said. “It’s kind of like an unspoken rule. After a lot of us get a goal or goal, we really look for that feed in the middle because a lot of practice is just keeping your head up, looking and keeping the momentum going. Not having the ball in your stick for too long and killing the ball.”
Glenelg’s first two goals of the game foreshadowed what was to come with consistent off-ball movement and precision passes. Ava Karbacka scored on back-to-back possessions in eerily similar fashion, cutting across the middle and burying a feed from a teammate in stride.
While Glenelg’s offense has elevated its game, the defense has been in lockstep. The Gladiators suffocate most opponents with their high-pressure and high-intensity unit. That was the case for much of the state semifinal as Kent Island was forced to quickly pass the ball and avoid double teams. CeCe Cassity was a force all evening as she routinely knocked down passes and ignited the Gladiators’ offensive push in transition.
“I think it’s all about just pushing each other even after goals or scored,” Cassity said. “We don’t drop our heads or anything. We talk to each other, and we always say, ‘Wipe the play, just keep going.’ It’s just about working hard nonstop, whether goals are scored. Whether we’re causing turnovers, it’s always about just pushing each other.”
The Gladiators have one more opportunity to push themselves for 48 minutes on a stage they’re familiar with. At the beginning of the season, not many expected Glenelg to be here. However, they’ve now arrived and hope to elevate that energy to new heights by winning a second straight state championship and the program’s seventh all time.
“It’s a really big deal,” Glenelg coach Alex Pagnotta said of returning to the state championship game. “There was a lot of doubts, even within our program amongst the girls early on probably. We graduated some really great players, but the group really just came together, gelled, focused in and put in the work.
“We had some really ugly games early on. Those ugly games are what you learn from. If you don’t have those ugly games, you don’t know where your weaknesses are. We were able to fix some of those mistakes. Now we’re firing on all cylinders and hoping to pull of something.”
G — 6 7 4 1 — 18
KI — 2 2 1 2 — 7
Goals: G: Graceyn Brown 4, Kaitlyn Hill 4, Regan Kelleher 3, Kayleigh White 2, Ava Karbacka 2, Emily Dello Russo, Ema Chapin, Blair Heusser.
Assists: G: Kayleigh White 3, Regan Kelleher 2, Emily Dello Russo, Graceyn Brown, Kaitlyn Hill.
Saves: G: Eliza Mitchell: 2