Pac girls come up just short vs. Briarcliff, Shaker

MAHOPAC, N.Y.—Mahopac High’s girls lacrosse team took a pair of tough losses last week, falling 18-17 to Shaker Saturday at home, after dropping a 9-8 decision the prior Monday (May 5) to Briarcliff.

Saturday against Shaker, Mahopac built a 10-7 lead at halftime, but was unable to hold off the visitors in the second half.

“We were missing some essential players, unfortunately, so it just came down to us being tired,” Pac coach Amanda Frederick said of the second half. “We had very few subs, so we were just constantly gassed. I tried to strategically take my two timeouts to give the girls a break, but it just wasn’t enough.”

Gianna Cirelli led Mahopac with five goals and an assist, Erin Harney and Gianna DeVito each scored four goals and added an assist, Ashley Koch had a hat-trick and an assist, and Bella Gangemi had a goal and one assist.  

“Gianna Cirelli did the most damage for us, with nine draw controls and five goals,” Frederick said. “Whenever she was off the field, we felt the difference. She does an incredible amount of work for us on the draw, and in our offensive zone. Gianna DeVito, Ashley Koch, and Erin Harney also had great offensive games. Gianna DeVito is doing good work for us from behind the cage, and really found her groove against the Shaker defense. Amanda Carey had 11 saves, one of her best games of the season. I was proud of the girls. It’s tough to be upset about a loss when it just comes down to exhaustion.”

Against Briarcliff the prior Monday night, Mahopac honored senior captains Kaitlin Grow, Erin Harney and Talia Salon on Senior Night, with the Pac falling to the Bears.

Cirelli and Harney each had two goals and one assist. DeVito scored twice, Koch and Shay Massett each had a goal, and Jisella Izzi had one assist. Carey stopped four shots on goal for Mahopac.

Frederick said poor shooting cost the team in a close game.

“We held a lead right until the end,” Frederick said. “But then Briarcliff really just out-powered us, and we lost on shot placement. Out of our 31 shots, only eight went in. We spent the rest of the week working on shot placement, so that never happens again.

“Koch played well for us with 10 draw controls and five ground balls,” the coach added. “That helped us control the game and she was our MVP. She hustled and wanted it for these seniors that she’s been playing with since she was a kid. Bella Gangemi also played well with five draw controls and four ground balls, and defensively, Shay Massett had a great game and scored the first goal of the game. Shay is someone we rely heavily on in our clear/ride, and in the midfield area.”

Mahopac (3-10) is set to visit Brewster Friday (May 16) at 4:30 p.m., and the team was scheduled to make up a rained-out game vs. Hen Hud on Sunday, May 18.