By D. Matt Dale
MaxPreps.com
Girls' lacrosse teams throughout Delaware are gearing up for the 2008 season, which opens the last week of March.
Here is a look at some of the top teams:
Tower Hill
The Hillers won the state championship last year with an impressive 16-1 record. Tower Hill beat nine teams by 10 goals or more and held eight opponents to under five goals. The team’s only loss came against Episcopal Academy of Pennsylvania, while Cape Henlopen and St. Andrew’s fell to the Hillers in one-goal overtime matchups.
Talented returning players will give Tower Hill a good chance to repeat as champs.
St. Andrew’s
The Cardinals finished in second place overall with a 13-5 record last season. Despite coming up with impressive wins over St. Mark’s and Sanford in the state tournament, St. Andrew’s lost to Tower Hill in the finals, 15-9, and went 0-3 against the Hillers over the 2007 season.
The loss of All-American midfielder Anne Holbrook (now at Gettysburg) will hurt the team, but look for the Cardinals to finish the 2008 season with at least 10 wins.
Cape Henlopen
Cape’s 2007 season ended with a loss to Tower Hill in the tournament, resulting in a 13-5 record. Only five players from last year’s team return in 2008. The Vikings have to replace Elizabeth Carpenter (Virginia Tech) and Brienna Faust (Old Dominion) who served as the team’s leaders last year.
With 13 freshmen on the roster, 2008 may turn out to be a rebuilding year for the Vikings.
St. Mark’s
Although St. Mark’s ended last season with a 14-2 record, the Spartans championship hopes were ended by an eight-goal loss to St. Andrew’s in the state tournament. The Spartans never scored fewer than 10 goals in a game, and went 5-2 verses the state’s top five teams in 2007.
If St. Mark’s can improve on defense and continue to produce on offense, look for the Spartans to go beyond the first round in this year’s tournament.
Caesar Rodney
Caesar Rodney will look to improve on a 9-7 record that included costly losses to St. Mark’s and Cape Henlopen. The Riders lost to a talented Worchester Prep (Md.) team twice last season, and missed out on the state tournament.
Although Caesar Rodney lost four starters, the team will be led by senior midfielder Chelsea Allen, who has signed to play for Towson University after graduation. Allen will have to guide a young team through a tough schedule if the Riders hope to return to the tournament.
Wilmington Friends
Although the Quakers went 5-12 last season, they will have one of the most experienced teams in the state. Seniors Carrie Hopkins (attack) and Megan Venetianer (midfield) will lead the team and try to make up for Friends' only inexperienced position, goalkeeper.
Look for the Quakers to turn some heads and surprise some of the experts this year.
Rank 'em
Here's how the Delaware girls' power ratings ended up last season:
1. Tower Hill 16-1
2. St. Andrew's 13-5
3. Cape Henlopen 13-5
4. St. Mark's 14-2
5. Sanford 11-7
6. Concord 14-3
7. A.I. Dupont 14-3
8. Caesar Rodney 9-7
9. Wilmington Friends5-12
10. Brandywine 9-6
11. Charter 10-5
12. Tatnall 2-13
13. Ursuline 6-10
14. Dover 5-10
15. Archmere 3-12
16. Newark 4-11
17. Glasgow 4-12
18. Middletown 3-13
19. Delmarva 0-3
20. Christiana 1-15
21. St. Thomas More 0-9
Delaware Seniors Defeat South Jersey’s Best in Annual Wrestling Tournament
On March 12, the best senior wrestlers from Delaware and South Jersey’s Regions 7 and 8 faced off in the South Jersey-Delaware Classic. The 11-man Delaware team ended an 11-match losing streak in the tournament and earned bragging rights over South Jersey for only the third time in the Classic’s 23-year history.
Caravel’s Vinnie Ranauto and William Penn’s Keith Hynson generated confidence throughout the Delaware team with big wins in key matches. Caesar Rodney’s Alex Meade showed why he will be continuing his wrestling career at Oklahoma State after graduation, winning his match and leading Delaware to a convincing victory. Ten of 11 Delaware wrestlers won their matches, resulting in the best overall performance for a Delaware team since the Classic’s conception.
Delaware Winners: Jamar Beckett (Sussex Tech), Brock Budesheim (Sussex Central), Durihan Downs (Glasgow), Jarrod Garnett (Caravel), Keith Hyson (William Penn), Mike Klosiewicz (A.I. DuPont), Colton McFatridge (Hodgson), Alex Meade (Caesar Rodney), Vinnie Ranauto (Caravel), Nick Tiberi (Hodgson).
D. Matt Dale covers Delaware for MaxPreps.com. He may be reached at dmdale.del@gmail.com.
