Santa Fe Prep wins inaugural lacrosse final
Blue Griffins beat Rio Rancho squad
Story Leonard has coached lacrosse for more than a decade. And the longtime Santa Fe Prep coach said that there’s one thing she can’t stress enough: draw control.
So after her squad scored four goals in the first two minutes of Thursday’s inaugural girls lacrosse state final, that message appeared to have been received loud and clear.
Brigid Quinn led the way with five goals and Rachel Sledzik followed with four to lead the Blue Griffins to an 18-6 win over the Rio Rancho Raptors club team at Santa Fe Prep to claim the first state title.
“That’s why I kept saying that the draw is so important,” said Leonard, whose squad translated each opening faceoff won into scores. “Once you get that possession and start your fast break, their defense can’t set up. So we just jumped on them and kept on them throughout the game.”
The Blue Griffins racked up 11 goals in the first half to take a 11-2 lead into the break.
“Once Elana Wirth got that first goal, that really set the tone for the rest of the game,” said Quinn, who recorded two first-half scores.
Then, in the second half, it was all Sledzik.
The Los Alamos High sophomore, playing for SFP, recorded all four of her goals after the break to effectively seal the win. Nearly the entire second half was played with a running clock because of the 10-goal mercy rule.
“In the first half, we were looking for the open player and taking the best shot,” Sledzik said. “But in the second half, it was just about getting down the field and taking a shot so they don’t get the ball back. I guess it worked.”
Afterward, when Sledzik was asked when there would be a girls team from Los Alamos, she shrugged.
“The girls I’ve talked to think lacrosse is a very violent game,” she said. “They don’t realize that we have different rules than the guys.”
And with just three teams currently — SFP, Rio Rancho and Bosque Prep — Thursday’s state title game was established in part to inform the public that the games played by the men and women are dramatically different.
“I still get that from parents, ‘I don’t want my daughter playing that violent sport,’” Leonard said. “But hopefully through more exposure, people can see that it isn’t. The girls’ game is graceful — like dancing in how you move and twist.
“But another thing that’s frustrating is that people still don’t have a clue what this sport is. I can’t wait for the day when you talk about lacrosse in New Mexico and say, ‘Now that is a cool sport.’”
SFP lacrosse is open to all players from the area. Currently on the roster are two players from Santa Fe High, one from Santa Fe Waldorf and two from Los Alamos.
RULES OF THE GAME: In lacrosse, there are 10 players from each team on the field, which is 110 yards long. Each team has a goalie, three defenders, three mid-fielders and three attackers. ... The “draw” signals the start of the game. Two players from opposing teams stand at the center line with their “crosses,” or sticks, held high, parallel to the center line. ... In the women’s game, physical contact is not allowed. The only protective equipment worn by female players is a mouth guard and face guard, and sometimes thin gloves. Stick checking is allowed only if the head of the stick is below the shoulders. Body checking — as in men’s lacrosse — is not permitted in the women’s game.
FASTEST GROWING SPORT FOR WOMEN: SFP re-established its program in 2001 after a 10-year hiatus. There are currently 10 SFP graduates playing NCAA Division III and club-level lacrosse in college.
“This is the fastest-growing sport for women in the NCAA — I believe they’ve added 21 Division I teams this year,” Leonard said. “And I think a lot of it is because it’s a great cross-over sport with other sports, and kids who are athletic pick it up real fast.
“... Like I always tell the kids, ‘If you can shovel snow, you can play lacrosse.”
UP NEXT: Bosque School is hosting an all-star game today, at 4:30 p.m.