THE PIONEERS had plenty of goals to celebrate in their 16-12 win over rival North Reading in the first round of the Div. 4 State Tournament on Sunday. No. 13 Lynnfield will travel to No. 4 Ipswich for a Round of 16 game on Wednesday at 5 p.m. (Kiera Mallett Photo)

 

 

After press time:
Lynnfield falls to Ipswich 17-10 (June 5)

 

Published June 5, 2024

By STEPHEN MARTELLUCCI

LYNNFIELD — On May 7, the Lynnfield High girls’ lacrosse team edged rival North Reading 11-10 at UMass-Lowell.

The Pioneers faced their rivals again on June 2 at home in the first round of the MIAA Division 4 State Tournament. Lynnfield was able to prevail again, this time with a final score of 16-12.

With that victory, the 13th-seeded Pioneers improved to 10-11. The 20th-seeded Hornets, meanwhile, ended up at 6-14.

“The first time we played them, it was back-and-fourth,” recalled Pioneers head coach Christina Serra. “This time, we led most of the game and they made it closer in the final quarter.”

The Pioneers led 10-5 at the half and they were able to extend the lead to 16-7 after the third quarter.

In the fourth, the Hornets rallied, scoring the game’s final five goals but it was too little, too late.

Lynnfield goalie and senior captain Casey Flynn saw a lot of action in that final 12 minutes as she finished the game with 10 saves.

“She did a great job on the eight-meter shots in the fourth,” said Serra, as the Hornets dominated the territorial play in the fourth.

The Hornets face-guarded junior captain Taylor Valiton which opened the door for her younger sister, freshman Hayden Valiton, who erupted for eight goals, including the 100th of her season. Taylor was still able to score twice.

Another Pioneer to have a big night was Ava Damiani as the freshman had seven points with four goals and a team-high three assists.

Freshman Jordan Calichman and senior Keely Briggs each had one goal and one assist while junior Lily White had two assists.

Along with the eight goals, Serra was aslo impressed with Hayden Valiton’s draws.

“She did a great job with the draw controls,” Serra pointed out.

This was also Serra’s first playoff win as she is in her third year at the helm.

“To get the first playoff win was amazing,” stated Serra.” I couldn’t be more proud of the girls.”

Lynnfield will visit 4th-seeded Ipswich (16-1) in the Round of 16 on Wednesday at 5 p.m. The Tigers won both regular-season meetings, 16-7, on April 11 and 20-13 on May 14.

“We played them better in the second game than in the first one,” said Serra. “We have to play smarter and focus in on defense.”

If the Pioneers can pull off the upset, they will face the winner of the Swampscott-Sandwich game in the state quarterfinals.