Green Dragons stop Sachems

WINCHESTER -- This season, it's been Duxbury domination in lacrosse. After the boys clinched another state title, the girls were seeking their first yesterday. They got their wish.

After trailing Winchester, 7-3, in the first half, the Green Dragons roared back, as junior Trisha Babson eventually tied the score at 9.

Following multiple lead changes, Babson scored three straight goals, increasing the Green Dragons' lead to 16-12 with 8:21 remaining, and Duxbury went on to prevail, 16-13, in the Division 2 final at Manchester Field.

"My coaches were telling me in practice [Wednesday] to roll the crease more because they knew I was strong enough," said Babson, who tallied five goals and two assists. "I had opportunities and [Winchester] kept pressuring me in the same spot, so they kept giving me the lane so I [took the shots]."

"I think we had to settle into our game, and that's what we did. We just basically played our game," said Duxbury coach Sue Paull. "The kids believed in themselves and it's been a total team effort from everybody, whether they're a field player or a bench player. We worked a lot on transition and the draws were huge [for us]."

Winchester (18-4-1) came out rolling in the first three minutes, forging a 3-0 lead on goals by Caroline Martignetti, Maria D'Amico, and Courtney Tavener. Duxbury (19-3) rallied with consecutive strikes by senior Kara Oloskey (six goals, one assist) and Leigh Tedeschi (two goals), who collected a rebound from goalkeeper Chelsea Osborne, who was attempting to clear the ball.

But Winchester went on a tear as Rachel Collins (two goals, one assist) scored twice, stretching the lead to 7-3 with approximately 17 minutes on the clock. However, the Green Dragons inched closer before intermission, making it 7-6 at the break.

"We've been down the past two games so we just normally can't give up and we just try to give it our all every time we're on the field," said Oloskey.

The Sachems scored only 15 seconds into the second half on a goal by Audrey Joy (one goal, two assists), and Meg Sullivan added another to put Winchester up, 9-6. After Duxbury rallied to tie, the teams went back and forth until 12-12, when Babson's scoring spurt put the Green Dragons ahead to stay.

"It's a good feeling. It's been a long way to come," said Paull. "I started this program in '95 as a club team . . . we've only been varsity since '98, so Duxbury has come a long way and we hope to continue."