Marin secures 3 section titles
Tam boys, Redwood and MA girls victorious
Three of Marin's top lacrosse teams made history on Thursday night, capping their seasons by claiming their first North Coast Section titles.
The Tam boys, Redwood girls and Marin Academy girls all survived and advanced to the final day of the season and all three teams pulled out narrow victories in their respective championship finals.
The 2022 season marks the first time that three different Marin programs claimed section titles, making it the most successful year for Marin lacrosse since the competition began in 2004.
Two Marin teams had won titles in the same season on numerous occasions, most recently in 2018 when the Marin Academy boys (D-II) and Novato girls (DI) accomplished it. That title was the fourth in a row for the Novato girls.
The Redwood girls got the ball rolling with a 14-12 home victory against San Ramon Valley on Thursday night. Led by Grace Minturn's seven goals — plus three apiece from Harper Glass and Grace Minturn — Redwood completed a 21-3 season that included both the MCAL and NCS D-I title.
The Tam boys and Marin Academy girls both had to hit the road for their championship opportunities, playing night games against top-seeded teams in Justin-Siena and Campolindo, respectively.
Elsa Schutt led the MA girls with three goals as the team
captured the pennant following a 6-4 victory over Campolindo.
The No. 2 Wildcats (154) handed Campolindo (162) just its second loss of the season.
Schutt scored all three of her goals in the first half and MA went into the break with a 4-3 lead. The game remained in doubt deep into the fourth quarter. Ella Klingelhofer scored her second goal of the game with 3 minutes, 19 seconds left to give the Wildcats some breathing room with a 6-4 lead.
Emily Brown also had a goal for MA, which prevailed in a defensive struggle. MA had previously rolled past Acalanes, Casa Grande and Tam by a combined score of 44-21 en route to the final.
Tam (16-7) showed the strength of boys lacrosse in Marin with a 7-4 victory over Justin-Siena.
Simon Montencourt led the Hawks' attack with two goals and two assists. Tam also got goals from Schuyler Hoeberichts, Jamie Boyle, Nathan Palumbo, Sebastian Chen and defenseman Chris Travers. Tyler Coates had an assist.
Travers split the JustinSiena defense late in the game to break a 4-4 tie with less than four minutes left to play. The Red-tailed Hawks scored two more goals late to put their stamp on the championship.
Nick Schottenfeld had an outstanding day during which draws and error-free possessions were key.
“This was a hard-fought and physical battle,” Tam coach Mike Johnson said. “The defense came up big and we had a good day. That defensive goal by Travers going the length of the field really gave us the advantage and the momentum.”
Wes King had 15 saves in net for the Hawks.
This was the second meeting between the two teams this season. Justin-Siena (182) handed Tam a 12-9 loss in the first week of the season, but the Red-tailed Hawks showed they learned from that earlier encounter.
“This is a great excuse not to get any sleep tonight. I couldn't be any happier for the guys,” Johnson said.
Wes King had 15 saves in net for the Red-tailed Hawks.
Tam defeated The Bay School, Acalanes, Campolindo and former MCAL foe Justin-Siena by a combined 44-16 en route to the pennant.
All in all, Marin county claimed three of the four NCS lacrosse titles on offer this season. De La Salle won the boys D-I title and Redwood came up one game short of making it to that final as well.