On a bright sunny afternoon, Wednesday, April 24, the Kent girls junior varsity lacrosse team played against the Hotchkiss School. Despite playing a hard-fought game, the girls ultimately fell 0-13.

Throughout the beginning of the game, the team worked hard to keep the ball on their opponent’s side of the field. Anna Liu ’21 made several notable runs with the ball down the field, but the first half ultimately ended in a 0-10 deficit with Hotchkiss scoring on fast breaks. In the second half, the girls made some hard runs and doubled down on their defense, but Hotchkiss kept the pressure high and scored three more goals, bringing the final score to 0-13.

Despite the difficult game, the girls kept their energy high, filling the field with encouragement and cheers, and playing their hardest. This year’s girls junior varsity lacrosse team is a “relatively young team,” but “are full of spirit and hard work,” describes Cheryll Chen ’20, a sentiment echoed by Head Coach Hardcastle.

Coach Hardcastle explains that most of the girls are in ninth and tenth grade, and very few have had more than a season of lacrosse experience. She elaborates, “But, because we have a range of experience, we’ve been seeing a huge improvement, especially in the fundamentals, since day one. We have some pretty new players but we’re catching on fast. It’s still early in the season, and the girls are constantly improving.”

After the game, Coach Hardcastle encouraged the girls and reminded them to bring their A-game to their next practice.

“I think today was especially tough because it was after a break with only one day of practice,” she says. She expects the girls to only improve moving forward, and highlights the strengths of the young team, “Usually, we’re good at communicating and keeping ourselves confident, really setting the tone and tempo for the team and the game.”

Coach Hardcastle emphasized the contributions of captains Charlotte Pompa ’22 and Becca Cohn ’21, and the way they keep the team up and focused. She also highlighted other players, including defender Ivanka Shen ’19, commenting on her rapid improvement as a brand new player, and high attacker Sophia Darras ’22 who “makes great shots.”

Going forward, the team is looking to work on communication, team building, and sharpening their fundamentals. Overall, as Coach Hardcastle says, this team has “a lot of heart and works really hard. I expect to continue to see them improving every day.”