This Thursday, May 16, Potomac’s Girls Varsity Lacrosse team traveled to Charlottesville, Virginia, to compete against St. Anne’s-Belfield in the VISAA State Semifinals.
Coming into the game, excitement was high. Potomac, ranked #4 in the VISAA Tournament, had beaten fifth-ranked Collegiate School two days previously in a dominant win. With an immense amount of talent and determination, our team had fought a season filled with tough opponents to a 14-7 record. They had committed to each other, and were prepared for the contest against St. Anne’s-Belfield, ranked first among independent schools in the state.
The game opened with an early goal from the Saints, but the score was quickly tied by Riley Walters ’24, who notched one of her three goals of the game. At the end of the first quarter, Potomac outcompeted STAB across the field to hold a 4-3 lead.
Early in the second quarter, and despite many excellent saves by Potomac goalie Caitlin Jarvis ’25, the Saints tied the game 5-5. Throughout all four quarters, Caitlin played a phenomenal game, making save after save to keep the Panthers in the competition and enduring immense pressure during clears from St. Anne’s-Belfield’s offense to transition the ball up the field.
Throughout the game. Alden Marin ‘26 was a consistent presence on the clear, whisking the ball up the field while dodging aggressive play from St. Anne’s-Belfield. Senior Captain Abby Park forced crucial turnovers on defense, backed by Francie Taylor ’25, Grayson Crittenberger ‘27, and the rest of Potomac’s defensive force. Margit Crittenberger ’25, among her many excellent plays, made a crucial interception on St. Anne’s-Belfield’s offense in the middle of the game, allowing Potomac to score. Catherine LeTendre ‘25 and Captain Amory Imperatore ‘25 dominated the midfield, winning draws and relentlessly driving toward the goal alongside Brook Ambrose ‘26. Captain Stella Pence ‘25 was a strong force on the attack, drawing St. Anne’s-Belfield’s defenders behind the goal and weaving around them to score. She was backed by Grace Jenkins ‘27, Ava Moazzez ‘25, and Walters, who won many crucial possessions for the Panthers from their actions behind the goal.
With 24 seconds left in the fourth quarter, St. Anne’s-Belfield snuck a shot into the goal to break the 6-6 tie. Despite a final push from Potomac, the game concluded 7-6, Saints.
Amory remarked, “This season has been super exciting. Although it stung losing by one at the end, there were lots of exciting moments. So many of our players had breakthrough seasons and everyone really came together as one. The effort all around was amazing. Although we will desperately miss our senior next year, most of the squad is staying together and we have a lot of good stuff to build on for the next season.”
Caitlin echoed her sentiment, “Though our season didn’t end how we wanted it to, we all made immense growth and progress throughout the season. I said at the beginning of the year that I wanted everyone to be proud of themselves after every game, and I truly believe that we all accomplished that for ourselves and for everyone on the team. I love this group of people more than anything, and we will miss our senior, Abby, so much.”
Throughout the season, Potomac Girls Varsity Lacrosse made enormous strides in skill, teamwork, and true camaraderie. They were supported and encouraged through exhilarating wins and hard losses by Head Coach Claire Berg, Coach Maggie Vaughan, Coach El Gollub, and Coach Sean Conroy.
I am personally honored to have played with this team this season and want to say a special thank you to our only graduating senior, Abby Park. Abby has been an immense presence on and off the field, and will be deeply missed in the years to come. Thank you for everything you have done!
