Newtown High School's girls' lacrosse team, the No. 5 team in the Class L bracket, defeated visiting and No. 12 Lyman Hall of Wallingford 20-5 in the first round on June 3.

With the win, the Nighthawks will have a rematch with South-West Conference rival Masuk of Monroe when the Hawks visit the No. 4 Panthers in a quarterfinal-round clash Friday, June 6 at 5 pm. The teams have met twice this season with Masuk winning in the regular campaign and Newtown taking the SWC playoff matchup — both times the road team was victorious.

In the win over Lyman Hall Newtown jumped out to a 10-1 lead and held a 13-4 advantage at the half before coasting to the win.

Natalie McLean scored six goals, had two assists, and recorded seven draw controls. Brooke Bulkley had four goals, an assist, and two draw controls. Blake Heim-Sherwood scored four times. Abby Ihlefeld and Jen Socci both scored twice, and Gabby O'Sullivan and Sara Ruddy both hit the back of the net.

Goaltender Emily Sachs made five first-half saves. Nikki Kaplan, Bulkley, and Kayla Locke all had interceptions. Ella Macey also provided strong defense, including drawing a charge against the opposing offense.

Read more about the game and the upcoming matchup with Masuk in the June 6 print edition of The Bee.