By Emily O’Connell and Sophia Giovaniello
Staff Writers
With a record of 16-3, Walpole Girls Lacrosse won their second Herget title under Head Coach Mike Tosone and clinched the first seed in the Division II East post-season bracket.
According to LaxPower, a website that ranks high school and college lacrosse teams, Walpole Girls Lacrosse had the toughest schedule in Massachusetts, including Needham and Cohasset, both teams ranked in the Top 10 ESPN MIAA poll.
“After looking at the schedule for the first time, I knew we were going to have a bunch of tough games against very strong teams, but I think we handled these games extremely well,” said senior Captain Hannah Nadeau.
On Wednesday, May 25, the Rebels defeated Hingham 17-9 at Hingham to secure the Rebels the top seed of their post-season bracket. Throughout the season, the team had many notable victories, none bigger than their opener against Wellesley.
“It’s kind of cool to think that our first league game of the year, that 17-16 overtime victory over Wellesley, was a huge piece of us winning the league,” said Tosone.
With the number one seed, the team aims to make it deep into tournament. Last year, the Rebels fell to Medfield in the the East Sectional Finals. This year, the Rebels earned a bye in the first round of tournament, and they will play their first three playoff games—if they make it that far—at their home field.
“My hope regarding the tournament is simply that we play the best lacrosse we can. If we do that, we have a shot to go deep. If someone were to beat us at our best, all the power to them. At our best though, it will take a really good team to stay with us,” said Tosone.
The Rebels kicked off their post-season on Thursday, June 2, with a 20-9 victory over the number eight seed, North Attleboro.
“As a team, we are strong in every part of the game and as long as we do what we can do, we will have a long and successful postseason,” said senior captain Michala Niden.
