MaxPreps Xcellent 25 National Girls Lacrosse Rankings

The McDonogh School has won 69 straight games and completed three consecutive undefeated seasons.

But Sunday's 12-11 victory over Maryvale Prep in the championship game of the IAAM A Conference tournament at Stevenson University had to be one of the sweetest wins of this incredible run.

Taylor Cummings scored the game-winner with 9.8 seconds to play as the Eagles staved off a brilliant challenge from Maryvale to claim its fourth straight IAAM title.

The Eagles finished the season at a perfect 18-0 and hold the No. 1 spot in the MaxPreps Xcellent 25 National Girls Lacrosse Rankings. No matter what, since they have dominated in Maryland and in the Maryland-New York Challenge, they will not relinquish their standing as 2012 national champions.

This title, though, did not come easy as Cummings weaved her way through traffic to score the game-winner over Maryvale's superb goalie, Caroline Federico. The goal came after the Eagles (13-4) rallied to tie the game in the final minutes.

Corinne Etchison led McDonogh with six goals.

"Coach (Chris) Robinson made a good call to set up our final shot so we held it for a while and then we ran a play," said the Maryland-bound Cummings, who had four goals. "There were 12 seconds left so I knew I had to go to goal. Luckily I got it past her (Federico); I was surprised it went in, to be honest."

Maryvale Prep had tied the game, 11-11, on goals by Miranda Ibello and Sam Darcangelo.

"We just wanted to play the first 25 minutes and then worry about the second 25 minutes and they did," said Maryvale coach Jessica Randisi. "They played a full 50 minutes of lacrosse and you can't ask for much more."

Robinson credited Maryvale and its goalie, Federico, who was brilliant in leading the Lions to a 9-7 win over No. 3 Bryn Mawr in the semifinals.

"They were so tough, they took care of the ball really well, and Caroline Federico was just phenomenal," said Robinson. "That was the toughest goalkeeper we have faced all year."

Robinson admitted he was curious to see how his team would do in a tight game. No team had come within seven goals of the Eagles all season.

"We haven't been in that situation; we have always had a comfortable lead in the second half," he said. "And to be pressured down the stretch, I feel I can coach (the situation), but (I didn't know) how we were going to react to it."

MaxPreps Xcellent 25 National Girls Lacrosse Rankings

1. (No. 1 last week) McDonogh (Owings Mills, Md.), 18-0
The Eagles capped another perfect season – their third in a row – and won their 69th straight game by downing Maryvale Prep, 12-11, to claim their fourth straight IAAM Division A championship. No team had gotten closer than seven goals of the Eagles until this last game, and the Eagles responded as Taylor Cummings garnered the game-winner with 9.8 seconds to play.

2. (3) Moorestown (Moorestown, N.J.), 19-0
The Quakers got some measure of revenge with their 15-10 victory over Ridgewood, the team they fell to, 10-9, in the NJSIAA Tournament of Champions final last season. Stephanie Toy had four goals and three assists. They closed out the regular season with a 13-6 win Saturday over Shore Regional.

3. (2) Bryn Mawr (Baltimore, Md.), 16-2
The Mawrtians were knocked out of the IAAM playoffs by Maryvale Prep, 9-7, in Thursday's semifinals. They fell behind, 9-3, and a valiant comeback fell short.

4. (4) St. Anthony's (Melville, N.Y.), 14-1
The Friars finished undefeated (10-0) in the CHSAA with Saturday's 17-10 win over 11 Sacred Heart (Hempstead, N.Y.). Chrissy Schreiber had four goals and an assist to lead St. Anthony's.

5. (5) Marriotts Ridge (Marriottsville, Md.), 16-0
The Mustangs faced Centennial in the third round of the MPSSAA 3A/2A tournament on Monday night. They toppled South River, 16-12, in the District V title game as sophomore Taylor Hensh scored five goals and senior Nicole Grote added three goals and two assists.

6. (6) Century (Sykesville, Md.), 14-1
The Knights won a 27-0 whitewash of Northwood in the second round of the 3A/2A state tournament and met Middletown Monday night.

7. (7) Farmingdale (Farmingdale, N.Y.), 14-1
The Dalers had a big 17-12 win over Massapequa, and closed out their regular season Saturday by defeating Darien (Conn.), 19-14. They open Nassau County playoff action Wednesday at home vs. East Meadow.

8. (21) Maryvale Prep (Brooklandville, Md.), 13-4
The Lions make a major jump after stunning former No. 2 Bryn Mawr, 9-7, in the IAAM semifinals and then taking No. 1 McDonogh to the brink, before falling in the final seconds, 12-11. They won eight straight games until bowing to McDonogh.

9. (9) Great Valley (Malvern, Pa.), 18-0
The Patriots won the Ches-Mont league championship and earned the No. 1 seed for the District 1 tournament. They opened Tuesday at home vs. Phoenixville.

10. (10) Ridgewood (Ridgewood, N.J.), 17-2
The Maroons dropped a 15-10 decision to Moorestown, but rebounded Saturday by whipping Immaculate Heart (N.J.), 18-3, to take the Bergen County championship. Kelci Smesko, Kaitlin Concilio and Lauren Beausoleil each had three goals in the victory.

11. (12) West Genesee (Camillus, N.Y.), 13-1
The Wildcats routed Central Square (N.Y.), 19-7, and close their regular season this Wednesday at home vs. Fayetteville-Manlius.

12. (13) Chatham (Chatham, N.J.), 17-2
The Cougars won the Morris County championship, defeating Mendham, 13-12, as Jaclyn Leto (four goals) scored with 12 seconds to play. Kallan Murray added three goals and Mary Kate O'Neill added two goals for Chatham, which won its third title in the past five seasons.

13. (14) Vero Beach (Vero Beach, Fla.), 21-2
The Fighting Indians won their seventh straight state title and extended their win streak over Florida opponents to 93 games with a 22-6 rout of Bishop Moore in the FHSAA final.

14. (15) Georgetown Visitation Prep (Washington, District of Columbia), 18-1
The Tigers advanced to the finals of the Independent School League championship with wins over Bullis School (Md.) and Stone Ridge (Md.). They face rival St. Stephen's & St. Agnes at St. Andrew's School (Md.) on Wednesday for the title. St. Stephen's has won the title every season since 1995 (some years the final was not played).

15. (17) Guilderland (Guilderland Center, N.Y.), 16-0
The Flying Dutch finished their regular season undefeated with a 14-2 victory Wednesday over Bethlehem (N.Y.).

16. (11) Sacred Heart Academy (Hempstead, N.Y.), 15-2
The Spartans lost their second of the season to St. Anthony's, 17-10, on Saturday, despite five goals from Maeve Quinn. They hope to get another shot at the Friars in the CHSAA finals.

17. (8) Ward Melville (East Setauket, N.Y.), 15-1
The Patriots dropped a 12-5 decision to West Babylon (N.Y.) in their regular-season finale, but received the No. 1 seed in the Suffolk County Class A playoffs. They open Monday against the Half Hollow Hills-Middle Country winner.
18. (18) Bay Shore (Bay Shore, N.Y.), 15-1
The Marauders closed their regular season Friday by downing East Islip, 11-5, as Caroline deLyra had three goals and three assists. They got the No. 2 seed in the Suffolk Class A playoffs and play the winner of Sachem East-Smithtown West on Monday.

19. (19) St. Stephen's & St. Agnes (Alexandria, Va.), 22-3
The Saints advanced to the finals of the Independent School League tournament with easy wins last weekend over Holy Child (Md.) and Flint Hill (Va.). They will meet Georgetown Visitation in the title game Wednesday at St. Andrew's School (Md.). Georgetown won the regular-season match, 12-11, a win that dealt the Saints their first ISL loss in 17 years. The Saints also played Potomac School in the quarterfinals of the VISAA tournament. The finals for that tourney are Saturday at Old Dominion.

20. (20) Garnet Valley (Glen Mills, Pa.), 17-1
The Jaguars won the Central League championship outright after sharing it with three other teams last year. They are the No. 2 seed in the District 1 tournament and hosted Perkiomen Valley on Tuesday.

21. (24) Hauppauge (Hauppauge, N.Y.), 14-2
The Eagles closed the regular season with four easy wins and enter the Suffolk County Class B playoffs as the top seed. They host Miller Place on Saturday.

22. (NR) Manhasset (Manhasset, N.Y.), 12-4
The Indians finished the regular season very strong, with wins over Farmingdale (12-6) and Garden City (13-9). They opened Nassau Class B playoff action Monday by defeating Herricks, 17-2.

23. (16) Garden City (Garden City, N.Y.), 10-5
The Trojans closed their regular season with a 13-5 loss to Manhasset and dropped five of their last eight games. The six-time defending New York Class B champions opened Nassau County play Monday by beating Mepham, 18-1.

24. (NR) Christian Brothers Academy (Syracuse, N.Y.), 13-1
The defending NYSPHAA Class C champion Brothers edged Brighton, 14-13, in overtime for their 11th win in a row. Marissa Romeo had seven goals, including the tying tally with seven seconds left in regulation, while Taylor Poplawski had six goals, including two in overtime. They host 12-2 Skanateles on Wednesday.

25. (NR) New Canaan (New Canaan, Conn.), 15-0
Sarah Mannelly had five goals and Olivia Hompe added four to lead the Rams to a key 12-10 win over Greenwich (Conn.). The Rams had another big game Tuesday at Wilton (Conn.).

Dropped out:
North Shore (Glen Head, N.Y.), 12-3, Massapequa (N.Y.), 13-2, Mendham (West Mendham, N.J.), 15-4

Chris Goldberg, editor and owner of Lacrosse Media, operates Phillylacrosse.com, LILacrosseNews.com and BaltimoreLacrosseNews.com, as well as the new national gear site, LaxGearZone.com. He may be reached at golax@phillylacrosse.com.