Eagles Upend No. 1 Foothill in Girls Lacrosse Semifinal

Adrienne Anderson continues to lead the Santa Margarita girsl lacrosse program to places its never been before. The junior was sensational in Saturday afternoon’s US Lacrosse Southern Section Orange County Division 1 semifinal, scoring a game-high eight goals in a 12-10 victory over top-seeded Foothill at Aliso Niguel High.

The matchup pitted the Sunset League champion Knights and Trinity League champion Eagles against one another for the right to advance to Wednesday’s Orange County title game against Los Alamitos at Mission Viejo High (4:30 p.m.).

Foothill had to be considered the favorite because of their experience in high-profile situations like the one both teams encountered Saturday. The Knights (14-3) advanced to last year's title game, where they lost to defending champion Los Alamitos.

Meanwhile, fifth-seeded Santa Margarita (15-3) never had progressed past the opening round of the playoffs until this spring, when it knocked off El Dorado and El Toro to reach Saturday‘s game. The stark contrast weighed heavily on the minds of some Eagles players, coach Cressita Bowman said immediately after her team’s upset victory.

“I think going into today, the girls were a little scared,” Bowman said, “They’ve never advanced past the first round of the playoffs, so they were a little intimidated.”

So what pregame advice did Bowman offer up before the clash with Foothill?

“I just told them that any team is beatable on any given day and that we’re here for a reason,” Bowman said. “They earned it, we’re not just here by mistake. Why stop now? We can just keep going and make that championship our goal.”

From the looks of it, the Eagles heard her loud and clear.

Foothill’s Jocie Case scored the game’s first goal on the Knights' first possession, but that would be the Foothill highlight of a first half dominated by Santa Margarita.

Anderson, who is among the most feared scorers in Southern California, quickly put the Eagles on the board when she avoided traffic near the net with a nifty move to her right that gave her the space to send a shot past Knights goalie Emily Kift.

Foothill found it difficult to win draws and gain clears from the onset, as Santa Margarita took advantage of its position to capitalize on two quick scores and push the lead to 3-1 with 11 minutes remaining in the first half. Madelin Williams scored the Eagles’ third goal off a draw, taking it in herself and scoring from point-blank range.

Foothill’s  Laura Gustafson scored on the Knights' very next possession, but the rest of the half belonged to Santa Margarita and its impressive ball control.

Anderson scored successive goals, the first coming on an Eagles man-advantage, to increase her team’s lead to 5-2. Kaitlyn Belt then joined in on the surprising Santa Margarita scoring onslaught, giving the Eagles a four-goal advantage with six minute left in the half

Anderson ended the half in her usual dominant fashion. The Stanford commit scored after  Kift was stripped off the ball by an aggressive Eagles defensive swarm outside of the crease. Kift secured possession with a tremendous steal but was then knocked around and she coughed up the ball to the eager Anderson, who quickly deposited her fourth goal.

Anderson then sent the semifinal to halftime with a goal as time expired. She received a slant pass across the center from Kelsey Taber with three seconds remaining and shot in one fell swoop to increase the lead to 8-2. It was a fitting end to 25 minutes dominated by Anderson and the underdog Eagles, who outshot Foothill 14 to 7 in the half.

“We really wanted to win every draw and that was our main strategy,” Bowman said. “I thought we controlled possession throughout the first half. We knew it was going to be a big game of possession. We did a good job of that.”

Foothill came out of intermission on target, as Haley O’Donoghue scored a much-needed Knights goal on their opening possession, cutting Santa Margarita’s advantage to 8-3. But the rally was short-lived.

 Anderson continued top brush off Foothill’s challenge on the Eagles' initial second-half scoring opportunity, driving in for her fifth goal. Teammate Taylor Rowden tacked on another Santa Margarita score moments later, extending the Eagles' advantage to 10-3.

Then, suddenly, something awoke inside Foothill’s players, who began to look the part of a No. 1 seed. Gustafson scored her third and fourth goals of the game in quick succession, before Brittany Paquette worked her way inside with a tough drive to trim the Knights’ deficit to 10-6 only five minutes into the game’s second frame.

As the clock crept near the midway point of the half, Santa Margarita saw its seemingly safe lead dwindle to 11-9. Foothill’s Lindsay Alex then netted her fourth goal of the second half to bring the Knights within one goal of completing an impressive comeback.

A look of sudden dismay suddenly replaced the smiles on Santa Margarita’s sidelines, as Anderson and company began dreading the possibility of losing their lead altogether.

“We were definitely [worried] but just couldn’t let them back into the game,” Anderson said. “We kept working and kept on top, so I’m really proud of everyone for bringing that one home. “

Anderson ensured her team would suffer no heartbreak at the hands of Foothill when she collected her eighth goal with 4 1/2 minutes to play. She slashed her way through a fray of defenders before sending a shot across her body and into the back of the net, securing the 12-10 lead that Santa Margarita would ride to the end.

“Adrienne is one of the hardest workers you’ll ever meet,” Bowman said. “She is a workhorse, through and through, and just doesn’t stop. When everyone is looking to her, she knows how to get things done and it’s hard to match her with anybody.”

Santa Margarita managed the clock to perfection after the goal, playing keep-away with the ball for more than two minutes and dooming the Knights to a semifinal exit.

Although the Eagles eliminated the top-ranked team in the postseason tournament, a potentially greater task awaits them in the championship match, where they face second-seeded Los Alamitos. The Lady Griffins (16-3) defeated Beckman, 19-13, in Saturday’s other semifinal and are aiming to repeat as Southern Section champions.

Anderson has no doubts her team has another upset up its sleeve. “We can come out and do it again if we work just as hard as we did today,” she said.

US Lacrosse Southern Section Orange County Championship Schedule:

Boys Division 1 -- No. 1 Foothill vs. No. 2 St. Margaret's at Mission Viejo High, Wednesday, May 11, 7 p.m.

Girls Division 1 – No. 2 Los Alamitos vs. No. 5 Santa Margarita at Mission Viejo High, Wednesday, May 11, 4:30 p.m.

Boys Division 2 -- No. 1 Mission Viejo vs. No. 3 Dana Hills at Aliso Niguel High, Thursday, May 12, 7 p.m.

Girls Division 2 -- No. 1 Capistrano Valley vs. No. 3 St. Margaret's at Aliso Niguel High, Thursday, May 12, 5 p.m.

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