St Mary's Calne
On Saturday 30th September, three of the senior lacrosse teams travelled to St Swithun's for the South West Regional Tournament. We were so impressed with the team spirit shown throughout the day, especially during such an intense day of lacrosse competition. This year, we are able to field a fourth senior lacrosse team, which is a brilliant achievement and shows the depth of lacrosse talent we have at school. The Senior 4ths played a home game v Marlborough 3rd Team. Here, we report on each team's day of competition:
Senior 1sts
The Regional Tournament saw the 1st Team compete against other schools in the region, with the first game against tough opponents Downe House. Games against Downe House are usually close and this was to be the case again with SMC working themselves back into the game scoring the last two goals of the game to finish the with a 4 – 4 draw. Three further wins in the group - v MJS (7-0), v St Georges (7-0) and Sherborne (4-2) - meant we qualified for the Championship group.
The next stage saw very competitive matches against Westonbirt, Godolphin and a nail-biter against St Swithun’s. Unfortunately, we did not qualify for a semi-final position. Some excellent play throughout with Daisy (UVI) leading the scoring and Freya (LVI) coming up with strong possessions on a number of occasions.
Senior 2nds
After an early start to Winchester, the girls took to the pitch with high spirits to play their first three matches in the pool before being placed into Division 1. The team worked well together and improved throughout the day. There were some great team plays from the attacks and the defence put a lot of pressure on the opposition. With many goals throughout the day, we made it to Division 1 and all the way to the final! With fatigue kicking in, the Senior 2nds fought to the final whistle, narrowly missing out on the win (1-2) to Queen Anne's School.
Senior 3rds
The day started off with the girls playing Downe House, followed by St Swithun’s 2nd Team, which was a tough start. They competed well but were unable to win those games. The Senior 3rds came back with a win against Sherborne 2nds putting the team into a competitive group for the afternoon.
In the afternoon, the team increased their motivation and energy. They started out strong with a 2-2 draw against Godolphin then a loss against Queen Anne’s 2s finishing up with a 3-0 win against Marlborough 2s which was thoroughly deserved. SMC had some powerful shots and goals from Clemmie and Tilly, with great attacking play by Eliza and Sofia. By the end of the day, the team had improved so much which really brought up the energy for the last few games. Overall, a really good morning and afternoon that the girls should be very proud of.
Senior 4ths - Home Game
This season we have been able to put out a fourth team to play matches! The 4th Team played a fixture against Marlborough's 3rd Team at home. For some, this was their first game since Fourth Form but the excitement and fun spurred them on. In a close game, Marlborough took the win (7-4), but the 4ths will look to get revenge next week when the teams play again.
A great set of matches played by all.
Mr David Abini, Head of Lacrosse