GREENVILLE — Ursuline battled Tatnall in their lacrosse meeting on April 2, hanging close to the Hornets well into the first half before Tatnall began to pull away. Lydia Colasante scored five times as the Hornets, the second-ranked team in the state according to Delaware Live, defeated the sixth-ranked Raiders, 16-7.
Before the offenses got going, it was the defensive efforts that stood out. Raiders goalkeeper Amelia Cradler made her first save 30 seconds into the contest, and she stoned the Hornets again shortly thereafter. Cradler stopped Colasante point-blank seven minutes in. She was not alone, as the Raiders’ defenders limited Tatnall’s opportunities to create open shots.
Chloe Bethea-Jones put Ursuline in front with 17:44 to go in the first half, scoring on an eight-meter opportunity. Tatnall keeper Devon Chipman made a stop after that, and the Hornets tied the score when Avery Brumfield picked up a ground ball, went in on the net and scored far side at the 14:23 mark.
The Raiders won the ensuing faceoff, but Tatnall’s Teryn Singer used her long reach to intercept a pass, leading to the first of Colasante’s goals. A ground ball win for the Raiders proved beneficial, as Isabella Koechert turned that into a spin move and a top-shelf goal to knot the score with 13:14 on the clock.
With 10 minutes remaining in the half, the Hornets went on a 6-0 run to shift the momentum of the game. Colasante scored on a second chance, and Katrina Cattermole added another just 23 seconds later. Colasante picked up her own rebound of a missed shot and tucked the ball in at the 7:58 mark, and Singer scored her first 40 seconds later.
Tatnall added another pair before Ragan Odle scored for Ursuline after a restart. Singer scored on a long-distance shot in the final minute, the 200th goal of her high school career. It was 10-4 at the half.
Cradler started the second half with two great saves, and another Hornets shot rang off the crossbar. The Raiders pulled to within five goals on two occasions, the last at 11-6 when Vivian Wiggins went lefty to find the net. But the Hornets cranked up their offense once more. They scored the next five to put the game out of reach.
Kali Clayton had four goals for Tatnall. Brumfield, Ivy Qualls and Singer each had two. Katrina Cattermole scored the other. Chipman had seven saves. The Hornets (2-1) had a 32-20 shot advantage. They visit Wilmington Friends on Tuesday for a 4 p.m. start.
For the Raiders, Odle and Wiggins each had a pair. Koechert, Jones and Claire Fowler each tallied one. Cradler was credited with 12 saves. Ursuline fell to 1-1 and hosts Newark Charter on Wednesday at 3:45 p.m.
All photos by Mike Lang.
