Lawrence girls soccer
By: Mike Molaro
The Lawrence High School girls soccer squad saw its season end with Monday’s 2-0 loss to Steinert in the opening round of the Central Jersey Group IV section of the state tournament.
But the Cardinals (9-11) made sure they went out in style, playing perhaps their finest all-around game against one of the state’s best teams.
"I’m really proud of the way we played," Cardinal coach Dave Boggs said. "Steinert is probably the best public school in Mercer County. We gave them a real scare. We played to the best of our ability. We have no regrets about how we played. We left it all on the field."
The 14th-seeded Cardinals allowed a goal six minutes into the game but had opportunities against the third-seeded Spartans.
"We created a lot of chances," Boggs said. "If we had scored, it would’ve been a different game. It was 1-0 until 20 minutes left in the game. We played them extremely well."
Lawrence, which fell to Steinert 5-1 during the regular season, came to play and almost pulled off the upset. Senior goaltender Crystal Martin made 16 saves in her final game in the Cardinal nets.
"Sarah Pearson did a great job marking their top scorer," Boggs said. "Colleen Kelley, Cara Brobst and Stephanie Dow did a great job defensively. Aubrey Smith also played a great game."
The 10th-seeded Cardinals fell to visiting Hightstown 1-0 last Friday in a Mercer County Tournament consolation game. Martin turned aside 10 shots, but the Rams made their first-half goal stand up.
"The field conditions were really bad because of all the rain," Boggs said. "We are a better passing team than what we showed in this game. We really put pressure on them in the last 15 minutes of the game.
"This was Hightstown’s last game, and they were ready to knock off a team going to the state tournament. We weren’t connecting on all cylinders."
Senior midfielder Katie Coleman scored two goals, including one on a penalty kick, to lead the visiting Cardinals past Princeton Day School 3-1 in an MCT consolation game on Oct. 26.
Dow also scored a goal, while senior defender Nicole Grossi and senior forward Kelsey Lyle each added an assist. Junior goalie Dianna Pfister recorded 11 saves.
"We played a great game." Boggs said. "We had a couple of girls out sick. Dianna (Pfister) did a great job for us. PDS has a turf field, and we always seem to play well on turf. I’m very proud of how we played.
"Megan Vaz played a great game, and Colleen continued to win balls in the air and did a great job clearing balls."
The record may say something else, but the Cardinals can look back proudly on a season in which they earned a state tournament berth for the first time since 2001 and set the foundation for what should be a bright future.
"We wanted to make the state tournament, and we did that," Boggs said. "That’s a huge accomplishment for the girls. There wasn’t a lot of drama with this team. This was a hard-working group of girls."
Much of the team’s success can be attributed to the upperclassmen, who went about their job with quiet leadership.
"We have 14 seniors on this team," Boggs said. "I had a lot of these girls on the travel team. I’ve known a lot of these girls since they were 8. Crystal (Martin) told me she’s known me longer than some of her siblings.
"We made the state tournament because of how hard these seniors worked and how they led by example. They are great kids and great students. We will miss them a lot."
There are no titles for the Cardinals, but they definitely are winners.
"This is a very special team," Boggs said.
NOTES: Coleman, Lyle and Pearson led the Cardinals with seven goals apiece. Lyle and Pearson were named to the Mercer 33, representing the top 33 scholastic female soccer players in Mercer County as selected by the coaches.

