When the High School North and High School South girls’ lacrosse teams squared off on April 13, both squads could have used the win to possibly change the course of their respective seasons. The Pirates, then 1-5, and the 2-3 Knights both had tough schedules to start the season.
So when North came out on top 16-3 and brought its record to an even .500, head coach Beth Serughetti said it was a “huge positive” that could set the tone for the rest of the year.
“We always go into [games versus South] understanding that whatever our record is doesn’t matter,” she said. “It’s always going to be a battle. I felt that we worked hard through the whole game. We have more experienced players, veterans who really helped us get that big win. We’re always looking for those games where we connect and keep it clean and hope that any game like that will help push us to the next game.”
Juniors and seniors, many of whom have been varsity starters since their freshman seasons, lead the way for the Knights. Sarah Carlen, Catherine Mak, Talise Redmond, Courtney Dignan, Haley Ghesani, Kylie Mulhall, and Natalie Munoz all make up the senior core. All seven start, and they would have been joined by classmate Alex Hendry, but an ACL tear left her unable to play.
It’s the high-scoring juniors, though, who have provided a good majority of the squad’s offense since they joined the team. Carli Harpel, whose sister Olivia was a stalwart for the Knights before graduating, currently leads the Knights in goals (15), assists (4), and points (19). Morgan Hendry is close behind with 12 goals, four assists, and 16 points. Classmate Vic L’Insalata provides a healthy dose of security at midfield. All three have already verbally committed to Division I schools. Harpel will join her sister at Northwestern, Hendry will attend Johns Hopkins, and L’Insalata is headed to the University of Maryland. All three are top-20 programs.
“They’re very committed to the sport,” Serughetti said. “They live, eat, and breathe lacrosse. It’s nice having those types of players for the other girls to emulate.”
Rachel Loo, another junior, is starting as goalkeeper for the first time. Serughetti said she has adapted to her new role well.
“She’s shown a lot of improvement since last year,” she said. “She’s much more vocal and more aggressive out of the cage.”
Serughetti hopes to see the girls continue to grow and build chemistry — and they’ll need to, as the remainder of the season comes with a tough slate of matches. All those games can do, said Serughetti, is help the Knights by the time the playoffs start.
“We have a difficult schedule, but it will help is in the postseason,” she said. “As tough as it is, gearing up for every single game will help us in the long run.”
The Pirates are in a similar situation. Allentown, the Brunswick schools, and Notre Dame are all on the docket, but that hasn’t discouraged players like Dana Salerno (14 points) and Amanda Easter (13 points). And with first-year head coach Colleen Hancox at the helm, there is plenty of room for growth.
Hancox comes to South after a well-traveled career that took her from Moorestown High School and the College of William & Mary in her playing days to coaching at Great Britain’s Guildford High School and for Scotland’s national team in an assistant role.
