As the school year comes to an end, so does this year’s spring season for the Malden High Girls Lacrosse team. The team this year continued to persevere through the last stretch of their season with constant determination throughout every practice and game. The girls have gained many experiences and created a bond that has been stronger than past years.
The team made prominent improvements from their first game to the last game. The varsity coach, Jessica Leggett, said that “[they] were much more competitive this season than last, and [the] program continues to grow as the sport is growing in Malden. Many freshmen don’t know what lacrosse is, or state that it’s not “their sport” since they don’t have the exposure and experience.” Leggett also mentions that this year, the team got new freshmen and sophomore players that were able to work hard and move up to fill critical roles on the varsity team. “[Our] JV team had some wins that showed some promise for [their] future! [She] hopes that growing the game through the middle and elementary schools continue to help [the] program grow and thrive so that [their] record reflects [their] progress.” The team has said to have amazing communications and connections with one another, and each day it has improved drastically. This season has been very productive, according to senior captain René Spadafora. “The team is so funny, everyday is something new and we’re always laughing and having fun,” she states.
Along with the communication, the lacrosse team had other several qualities that not every team encounters. Leggett proudly expressed that the team has improved on many of their skills.“Some standout players this season were senior Gianna Giuliano who came to us as a Junior and is now our leading goal scorer, seniors René Spadafora and Athena Goon who led our team on defense, and freshman Angie Nguyen and sophomore Jill Tramondozzi who both started playing lacrosse this year and worked their way up to being strong forces on varsity in the midfield for us.”
Lacrosse is sticking to it’s reputation for dedicated players, both on and off the field. They had some strong competition this year, with close games against Winthrop and Saugus as well as making a huge improvement when they faced Gloucester.
With the seniors leaving from the team, Leggett stated that “each one of them has unique talents that [they] will miss.” She expresses that this group of seniors has helped to mold the program to be stronger and more competitive. “It’s always bittersweet to lose girls that you’ve grown close to and that you count on everyday, but you know they’re going onto big things!” She even mentions that a couple of them are continuing their lacrosse careers in college.
Though the spring season is over, it didn’t affect the morale of the team. They were truly dedicated, and continued to put forth all the effort possible. With a team who has a universal mindset like this, they proudly finished the year off strong. “Each player had individual goals that they’ve worked to meet and re-set, and [our] team has accomplished many goals like running a new offense and plays, and learning and implementing new and more complex lacrosse strategies,” states Leggett.
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