Girls Lacrosse: Cougars to Compete in State Final

After a dominant 19-6 performance over the Western Albemarle Warriors in the AAA Virginia High School League Girls Lacrosse semifinals Tuesday night, the Oakton High squad will head to the championship game for the second consecutive year.

Last year, the state title remained elusive, as the Madison Warhawks defeated them for the third time that season. This year, it is the Cougars who are the favorites entering the game, having already defeated the Langley Saxons twice — once for the Cougars' . 

"We have more depth and experience than last year. We're just older now," Rupp said. "Plus the fact that we lost it last year just makes us want to win this year even more." 

The Cougars started Tuesday's semifinal game with a 6-1 scoring spree, with two goals from Jackie Rupp and one each from Carly Palmucci, Tori Anderson, Allison Turk and Kelsey Clarke. Alex Revel, Rupp and Palmucci had one assist each.

After the Warriors scored their first goal, the Cougars continued their offensive assault with seven more goals to end the first half while the Warriors added just two. Claire Stikeleather and Turk had two goals in that scoring run, while Palmucci, Clarke and Revel also netted one to put the Cougars up 13-3 at halftime. Palmucci had three more assists. Clarke and Stikeleather also assisted in the first half.

The Cougars outscored the Warriors 4-1 — two from Rupp and one each from Anderson and Revel — in the first 10 minutes of the second half, allowing enough breathing room to bring in second-string players. The reserves allowed just two goals while adding two of their own from Sami Lemieux and Katherine Dunwoody to end the game with a 19-6 final score.

The Cougars will face the Langley Saxons at 6 p.m. Saturday at Westfield High for the state title. The Saxons will not only be seeking a state title, but redemption for their previous two losses to the Cougars this season.

"People are saying it's hard to beat a team a third time," said Rupp, a senior co-captain who scored four goals in Tuesday's game. "They have a different style that clashes with ours, so we just have to keep working on our own game and forget about them."

Though the Cougars started the year with an experienced senior class, Counts knew the girls had a lot of work to do if they wanted a shot at the state title. After tightening their defense and improving team chemistry on the field, Counts feels confident the girls can bring home the program's first state title since 2008.

"From the beginning of the year to now, the biggest change is application of knowledge. They're hearing things they needed to hear and doing things they needed to do that they weren't necessarily doing at the right time or right place earlier in the year," Counts said. ""We're going to continue to prepare for Langley by focusing on our own strengths, doing what we do. I tell the girls over and over, 'If you do what you do well, you'll take care of what you need to take care of on the field.'"

Though the Cougars displayed little fanfare for their semifinal win in the state tournament, Rupp said it should not be mistaken for a lack of enthusiasm.

"We expected to be in the state finals because that is what we set out to do," Rupp said. "It would mean the world to win that state title. Before the season even started we were waiting for this moment because we knew we were supposed to be here."