Girls’ Lacrosse—

Hawks Scoring In Bunches In Early Going

By Andy Hutchison

If the first few of games of the season are any indication of what’s to come for the Newtown High School girls’ lacrosse team as the spring unfolds, the opponents had better come up with some effective defensive strategies (that or a highly productive offense to counter Newtown’s potent attack) … in a hurry.

The Nighthawks scored a combined 48 goals in their first three games — all wins, in case you hadn’t guessed. Newtown beat Immaculate 14-6 in a not-so-surprising season-opening win on April 2, then dominated Cheshire in what was supposed to be a challenging nonconference clash, 18-6, the next day. They outscored Brookfield 16-12 on Tuesday.

In the first week of the campaign, the weather had yet to warm up, but the Nighthawks’ offense was red-hot from the opening face-off.

The key to this offensive success: Ponytails.

Newtown’s players say they watch to see the opposing defenders’ ponytails when the defenders turn their backs. It’s at those times that the Hawks’ offensive players without the ball make a cut toward the goal, receive a pass and find themselves one-on-one with a mostly-helpless goaltender — thus the 48 net-finders.

Maybe the opposing team’s defensive strategy should be to make a team trip to the hair salon. That would never work, of course, in an effort to shut down Newtown’s version of what is basically the backdoor cut in basketball. The players also call this movement without the ball “speed cuts” because they happen quickly. Newtown’s offense is clicking thanks to more then just watching for those pony tails. Accurate passing, a no-hurry approach, and speed are all key elements to high productivity on offense, the coach and players say.

“When we get patient and slow it down, it works like clockwork,” junior Betsy Vendel said.

“The offense is really doing a good job of reading the defenses,” NHS defensive player Jen O’Connell added.

On top of having a potent offense, Newtown’s defense and goaltending cannot be overlooked. The Hawks held Cheshire to just one second-half goal thanks to the defensive play of O’Connell and company.

 “I’m really confident in them now from the first two games we’ve had,” goaltender Lisa Isabella said of her teammates.

Although the defensive efforts cannot be overlooked, they are easily overshadowed by the productivity on the offensive end.

“We have a lot of fast girls on offense,” said Courtney Gleason, one of those attack players. “We read each other well on offense. We know how each other plays.”

It’s not as if there is one player for the opposing defenses to mark closely. In the win over Cheshire, Vendel was one of three players with three goals — Gleason and Libby Feltch being the others. Lisa Vendel added four goals and Kaitlin Brophy, the team’s lone freshman, netted five.

“We have a lot of people who can score,” Head Coach Maura Fletcher said. “It’s not surprising because we have traditionally scored a lot of goals.”

Although Fletcher expected her team to score a lot, she never could have expected it to light up the scoreboard so much against Cheshire, a Division I tourney team that won 11 regular season games a year ago.

Newtown, the three-time South-West Conference champions, despite losing some key players from the offense, midfield, and defense, to graduation, expected to be good once again. But dominating their first two opponents gives the players that much of a better feeling about the prospects for another good season.

“I think it gives them a little more confidence,” Fletcher said.

They are not letting the early-season success get to their heads, however, and the players say they aren’t about to let their guards down. Even with the game against Cheshire well in hand, the Hawks kept fighting for every loose ball as if the score were close.

The returning players know what it takes to win, and those up from the junior varsity ranks, along with the lone ninth-grader, Brophy, are getting a feeling for what it takes from the start.

“It’s so cool to be a part of a team that’s doing so well,” Brophy said.

The Hawks will have plenty of big tests coming up. After tangling with last year’s Division II champion, Brookfield on Tuesday, and visiting Pomperaug on Thursday (after The Bee sports section went to press), things should really get interesting. The Nighthawks are slated to visit Division I runner-up Wilton on Saturday and return home to play Joel Barlow, which upset them in the first round of the D-I playoffs, on Thursday, April 17 at 4 pm.