The May River lacrosse girls weren’t going to let a late lapse ruin their night. Instead, they rose to the occasion in overtime Wednesday to defeat host Hilton Head High 6-5.
“As I told them, tonight was a game of heart and fight,” May River coach Caitlin Szymanski said. “We have had girls playing in positions they had never played before and they made the most of it. A lot of great communication on the fly. The girls really care about each other and deserved the win.”
Neither team could find separation in the first half, as both the Sharks and Seahawks traded three goals apiece, but after halftime the Sharks looked like they were pulling away. Courtney Alewine found the back of the net after several Seahawks failed to corral the ball, and Corynn Psychohios doubled May River’s lead with13 minutes to play.
After a timeout rallied the Seahawk girls with some encouraging remarks from coach Kara Cooke, Hilton Head sparked back to life with Sharon Urbina’s second goal of the game. Despite the Seahawks losing the ensuing draw, a clutch save from goalie Brooke Simons enabled another shot for the Seahawks, and midfielder Aja Caron flung a ball past Liz Iglesias to tie the game with 1:52 left, sending the contest to overtime.
The Seahawks had a chance to end it early in OT, but an excellent denial by Iglesias kept the Sharks alive. It was senior leader Katie Benenati who played the hero, flying a ball past Simons to win it for the visiting Sharks.
“Katie and all the seniors have been incredibly important,” Szymanski said. “She was playing center tonight and is a captain of this team. All the girls look up to her, and she can remain calm in tense situations, which of course occurred tonight.”
Benenati and Psychohios led the Sharks with two goals apiece, while Alewine and Sydney Santos added one each.
Victoria Glover and Sharon Urbina both scored two for the Seahawks along with Caron’s late equalizer, and Simons made nine saves in net.
UP NEXT
May River (4-2) travels to AC Flora on Saturday.
Hilton Head (1-3) hosts Pinewood Prep on Saturday.
Story by Wes Kerr
