Wellesley (4-0) collects emotional win over Franklin
WELLESLEY >> It’s much too early in the season for Wellesley girls lacrosse head coach Steve Balter to call a blowout over a fellow Div. 1 contender a statement.
But after the unbeaten Raiders (4-0) rolled past Franklin 19-3 on Saturday, he didn’t shy away from recognizing the performance as a major victory on multiple fronts.
Just about every main philosophy the team preaches clicked into place, using stingy defense, accelerated pace and a possessions advantage to roll out a nine-goal second quarter and a 13-1 halftime lead.
Tara Battaglino (seven goals, two assists), Kaitlyn Uller (four goals, four assists) and Abby Beggans (four goals) were some key cogs, helping Wellesley avenge its emotional loss to the Panthers (4-2) in last year’s Div. 1 state quarterfinals. Most importantly, though, the Raiders showed off a dominant performance in a game they had dedicated to assistant coach Joanna LaPlaca’s recently passed husband, Eric LaPlaca.
Both are from Franklin, and it meant a lot to the program to win this one.
“This Franklin game’s been kind of on our radar,” Balter said, holding back tears. “To not only, obviously, play well against a good team, and also kind of look at last year and say, ‘OK, we want to do better than we did with that playoff loss.’ But also, in his honor, we wanted to do that. … I’m trying not to get emotional, he was a very nice guy. This was a big win because of that for us.”
Battaglino used her length and strength to record a hat trick in each of the first two quarters. The sophomore’s assist on Beggans’ first goal was part of her seven points in a dominant first half, but was just one part of a large team effort.
Battaglino scored her fourth goal with 9:53 left in the half, starting a string of four goals from four different scorers in less than two minutes. Uller, who orchestrated much of the attack, scored with 8:06 left in the first half for an 8-0 lead before Franklin finally tallied a goal from Julia Flynn.
Much of the surge had to do with the possessions Beggans started on draws. An aggressive tempo also caught Franklin on its heels a bit. Six of Wellesley’s goals were followed with another one less than a minute later.
“(Battaglino) is one of our very great players, but it’s a whole group of them together,” Balter said. “We talk about possession and defense as much as talk about scoring goals. What (Beggans) did on the draw today was every bit as important for us as what (Battaglino) did on the offensive end. … We talk a lot internally to our team about all the little things that make for a (19-3) score.”
That includes a standout defensive performance, highlighted by a nearly four-minute possession Franklin started the game with that Wellesley didn’t allow a shot on goal within. Uller and Eliza Chapman stood out in an otherwise well-rounded effort, allowing no more than three goals for a fourth straight game to start the year.
Colgate-commit Bryce Lane (four saves) staved off a few good bids in net as well.
“What I told the team at the end of the first quarter was … the whole game turned our way because of that first defensive possession,” Balter said. “The goals are one thing, but we pride ourselves on defense. … If they can’t score, they can’t win.”