WCAC Lacrosse
Angel's Helpers Lift Knights
St. Mary's Ryken Wins Its First Title Despite Containment of Star Player
Good Counsel lacrosse player Ashley Stodter jumps for joy -- and into the arms of teammate Lizzie Kusbit -- after Kusbit scored the game-winning goal.
(Photos By Toni L. Sandys -- The Washington Post)
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Tuesday, May 15, 2007
Stop Zach Angel from scoring, and what is St. Mary's Ryken?
The answer is still a Washington Catholic Athletic Conference champion.
Despite DeMatha's complete efforts to contain the Knights' best player in yesterday's WCAC final, Angel's teammates didn't let it faze them in a 13-12 victory last night at the University of Maryland.
Fourth-ranked St. Mary's Ryken (17-2) won its first conference title after losing in the semifinals the previous three years and ended No. 8 DeMatha's eight-year run as conference champions.
"We're a team, and Zach's a huge part of that, but we have a lot of people who can step up," senior midfielder Taylor Cook said. "We have a lot of people who can handle the pressure."
After Angel notched five goals and five assists in a 17-8 drubbing of DeMatha (14-7) on April 24, Stags Coach Scott Pugh reworked the defense to shut off Angel and double-team him as soon as he touched the ball.
"If other guys were going to hurt us, we would put up with that," Pugh said.
Cook notched four goals, junior attackman Kyle Yates added three, and seniors Bray Dunaway and Tyler Spalding each had two for St. Mary's Ryken.
"Last year we played as individuals," Angel said. "This year we played as a team and worked hard, and we won it."
Angel took two shots but had three assists. As both coaches said, a player as talented as Angel affects the game whenever he's on the field, even if he isn't touching the ball. Angel was named the player of the game.
After Ryken took a 3-2 lead less than a minute into the second quarter, DeMatha junior midfielder Mike Rogers rattled off three straight goals, part of his five in the game. The Knights responded, taking a 7-6 halftime lead and pushing it to 13-10 with 7 minutes 44 seconds left in the third quarter.
Junior midfielder Stephen Tepsick brought the Stags to one goal with 19 seconds remaining, and DeMatha got off two more shots before time expired and the Knights stormed the field.
Senior Appreciation
For senior Lizzie Kusbit, Good Counsel's fourth straight girls' WCAC title was the "best by far."
Kusbit scored in the second overtime to beat Holy Cross, 11-10, yesterday. It was her only goal of the game. Ashley Stodter scored five goals, and Lauren Fenlon added three.
The Falcons seniors won 67 games during their career. Good Counsel (17-3) beat Bishop Ireton, 16-6, in last year's title game.
"I was just so excited we had a competitive team," Stodter said. "Well, I didn't want it that exciting."
No. 4 St. Mary's Ryken 13, No. 8 DeMatha 12 Good Counsel 11, Holy Cross 10 Save the Day: St. Mary's Ryken junior goalie Andrew Wascavage had 16 saves and stuffed DeMatha's Mike Smail on the crease as time expired. Rematch?: St. Mary's Ryken will graduate 11 seniors, but still has back plenty of firepower. DeMatha will graduate four seniors and have back nearly its entire starting lineup.
