Falcons Fall Short In Three-Peat Bid

Sometimes, the best just isn’t quite enough.

Three fourth-period goals, two during a penalty and the third from a draw that took place during the advantage, lifted Marriotts Ridge past Severna Park 11-10 at Stevenson University on May 21, giving the Mustangs the 3A state girls lacrosse championship and ending the Falcons’ reign atop the classification.

Maria Bragg had a hat trick plus an assist, and Erin Hussey scored twice and had an assist. Payton Jeffers and Ava Deegan both had a pair of goals, and Gracie Ciuba also scored for Severna Park.

Though the Falcons were denied a third successive state championship, the fact they were in the game at the end at all was a testament to grit and character.

A little more than 10 minutes into the game, senior defender Avery Saviano picked up her second yellow card when her stick-check attempt glanced off the head of her mark — a strict interpretation of the rules but one the Falcons felt lacked the kind of leeway often considered in those situations. That robbed them of their fastest defender and a key transition player.

In the second, midfielder Bella Van Gieson collapsed to the turf while battling through a double-team, having suffered a right knee injury. She did not return, and with that, the Falcons’ best two-way midfielder was also gone.

Still, they found a way to enter halftime tied at 7 and feeling pretty good about their chances.

“Those two are so important to us, not just on the field but off the field they do so much for us and have been true leaders for us,” senior Payton Jeffers said of Saviano and Van Gieson. “So it was, just do it for them.”

From 6-3 down in the second quarter, Severna Park went ahead 10-8. They didn’t score again, but it looked like they might not need to until Bragg was whistled for a stick to the head with 6:11 left in the game. Marriotts Ridge scored twice on that penalty, and they won the draw that gave them the decisive goal before Bragg emerged from the box.

Try as they might, Severna Park couldn’t find that last goal they needed to extend the game.

“For all that we went through in a state playoff game, I’m so proud of this team. They pulled together,” said Severna Park coach Annie Houghton. “You always want to win and it doesn’t always happen that way. They mustered energy and they were pumped up – we made some crucial plays, but they came up on the winning side. There’s ups and downs – you always want to be on the ups, and the downs stink, but I’m so proud of the way this team played.”

The team’s nine seniors — Hussey, Jeffers, Van Gieson, Saviano, Kiera Abere, Kaylee Gerber, Nora Gerig, Kate Griner and Jessica Ricci — conclude their careers as three-time state finalists and two-time state champions.

“Not everyone gets to make it here. We have to fight for a spot here and fight for a win, and only one team gets that win,” Hussey said. “We’re definitely very lucky and fortunate to have made it here (so often).”