GRANBY — After trading goals and ending regulation tied, the fifth-seeded Granby girls lacrosse team shouldered a tough sudden-death loss in overtime to No. 12 Nipmuc, 16-15, in the Central-West Division 2 Tournament first round.
The Rams finished 11-6.
Nipmuc (13-6) will move on to face No. 4 Grafton (17-3) in the quarterfinals.
Junior Kate Sarnacki tied the game at 15 with 1 minute, 16 seconds left in regulation for Granby.
“You know, with sudden death, (overtime) doesn’t depict what went on in the entire game,” Granby coach Mackenzie Paolini said. “It was just unlucky. It was an unlucky turn of events and Nipmuc took that unluckiness and they pounced on it. And good for them for being able to do that.”
Nipmuc controlled the momentum early in the first half with a 5–0 run, but after a quick timeout by Paolini and a series of goals, including four from Sarnacki, the Rams headed into the second half with an 8–7 lead.
Late in the first half Nipmuc left attack wing Maggie Moss was sent to the bench with a yellow card, and the Warriors remained down a player for the final minute of the first half and into the beginning of the second.
Granby and Nipmuc traded the lead for much of the second half.
Moss, who added three goals for the Warriors, got a second yellow card early in the half, which forced her to the bench for the rest of the game and left Nipmuc again down a player for a two-minute stretch.
But teammates Grace Merten and Kathryn McManus each scored three goals in the second half for the Warriors, and Jade Dougherty earned her third for Nipmuc with 1:39 left in overtime.
On Granby’s side, senior captain Emily Whitacre scored four goals while her fellow captain and classmate Hailey O’Connor posted an assist. Julia Frappier found the net twice for the Rams, and Kaelyn and Kaeleigh Croteau each scored a goal.
Sarnacki was an offensive force for Granby. She led the game in goals and assists, with seven and three, respectively.
Though Sarnacki made important offensive contributions, Paolini said, “It doesn’t come down to one person.” What’s “amazing” about Sarnacki, according to Paolini, is that “she knows when to take it and she knows when to pull out. … It’s really become a cohesive team atmosphere. Although (Sarnacki) has the numbers, it’s everyone.”
It was the first overtime game for the three-year program.
After last season, Paolini said the Rams had specific goals, namely beating Belchertown and Amherst Regional during the regular season.
“We came out this year and we got those wins. Those, to me, are the victories,” she said. “As sad as the ending of our season is, it doesn’t take away from everything that we did.”
It was the final game for seniors Whitacre and O’Connor.
“That presence is going to be missed,” Paolini said. “I got so lucky. I named them captains as sophomores, and I said, ‘Let’s see how this goes,’ and I couldn’t have asked for two better girls to lead this team to where we are today.”