Henriquez stones ’em
Norwell star a rock in net for Clippers
Ask Norwell senior Chase Henriquez what she enjoys most about being a goaltender, and the answer comes quickly.
“I like being the backbone of the team,” the Clippers’ girls lacrosse star captain said.
AT LACROSSE ROADS Kat Hasenauer Cornetta
Ironically, if it weren’t for a back injury suffered as a youth player, Henriquez might not have taken a turn in the net.
The four-year letter winner for the Clippers picked up a lacrosse stick at a young age, and found herself with a goal-scoring spirit.
“I was an attack,” Henriquez said. “I liked to score.”
In middle school, she fractured vertebrae in her back. She was able to get back on the field, but found herself more drawn to playing goalie than the constant movement required of a field player.
“I fell in love with the position and I didn’t look back,” Henriquez said.
Her choice was a boom to Norwell. Henriquez’ confidence in net has earned her the program’s single-game saves record (19) and helped her lead the Clippers to two consecutive Division 2 state titles. Playing with a broken thumb in last year’s championship game against Walpole, Henriquez made a stellar save with just four seconds remaining to clinch the 12-11 victory.
But this season is a tad different from the past two years. Heading into the last week of the regular season, Norwell is 9-4 and has struggled. The ups and downs can be especially trying for a goalie.
“It’s one of the most mentally difficult positions,” Henriquez said. “Sometimes your mistake will end in a goal for the other team. It’s been hard. But when that happens, my parents always tell me, ‘Next. Move onto the next one.’ ”
Henriquez has been relied upon as her team finds its way, logging 14-save games against Sandwich and Cohasset this season.
Said Henriquez: “We will definitely take it one game at a time for the rest of the season.”
As Norwell’s season winds down, so does Henriquez’s lacrosse career. She will attend Duke in the fall to study English and one of three foreign languages (French, Latin or Arabic), while putting her goalie stick away. Henriquez is confident in her decision, knowing that she has had a Clippers career chock full of amazing memories.
“There are so many memories,” she said. “My sophomore year I was lucky enough to be on the team with my older sister (Lexie) and we won the state championship. And there’s this picture from that where I’m getting a giant hug from Katherine King. We always said those were King-sized hugs.
“It’s a legacy of a winning program, but it’s so much more. It’s all for one when we play.”
Ryan on a record pace
Jack Ryan had a 12-point afternoon Monday as his Mystic Valley boys team defeated Minuteman, 135. But the scoring tally wasn’t the only impressive part of his day.
The senior captain’s second goal of the game was his 500th career point, making him just the fifth player in recorded Massachusetts lacrosse history to reach that mark. His five goals Monday also edged him closer to the state career record, which stands at 362 goals. Ryan currently has 353.
Mystic Valley (6-7) has had a lacrosse team for just nine years, and Ryan, who jumped onto the varsity squad as a seventh grader, has been a key cog for the last six seasons. Last week, the Eagles notched their 100th win as a program thanks to Ryan’s 14-point effort against Greater Lowell.
“This means a lot to me knowing that I have helped contribute to the success of the Mystic Valley lacrosse program,” Ryan said. “I am very lucky to have had a great coach like Marty Horkan who has always pushed me and also have been lucky to play with some great teammates over the years.”
Remembering Bruce
This season, late Herald sportswriter Bruce Lerch was remembered via the Bruce Lerch Game of the Month series. Two games between boys lacrosse powerhouses — Medfield vs. Dover
Sherborn on April 25; and Hingham vs. Duxbury on May 4 — were dedicated to Lerch, and portions of the gate receipts were donated toward three scholarships given to high school athletes in his honor.
According to Lincoln-Sudbury coach Brian Vona, the coordinator of the tribute games, the two matches collected $2,600 toward the fund.
The recipients of this year’s scholarships will be presented at the lacrosse state championships at Boston University’s Nickerson Field on June 17.
In addition, the Boston Cannons recently named a second recipient of their journalism scholarship in Lerch’s honor. Hanson resident and current Lasell College student Brian McLoughlin will cover the Major League Lacrosse team over the summer through the auspices of the program.