The New Trier High School girls lacrosse team is continuing their winning season, going 12-3 overall against strong competition in and out of state. On May 2 and May 3, the Trevians beat two Midwestern opponents, Upper Arlington High School from Upper Arlington, Ohio and Detroit Country Day School from Beverly Hills, Michigan. 

Against Upper Arlington, the Trevs started off strong and scored first, according to junior Emma Riley. Despite this, the team was down 7-4 at halftime. They were able to close the deficit in the fourth quarter, taking the lead with only 1:39 left in the game, thanks to an equalizing goal from senior Matty Meier and the game winning goal from junior Avery Anderson. The team ran out the clock with the remaining time in regulation, ending with a final score of 10-9. 

To keep the lead at the end of the game, senior Ellie Bornhoeft focused on winning the draw control to keep possession of the ball. After, the team aggressively pressured the ball to the outside of the field. 

“We spaced out, passed the ball, and moved the ball quickly,” Anderson said. “We didn’t necessarily go to goal because that’s how you lose possession, especially with a minute left.”

Even though the opposing team was double-teaming players to try to get the ball back, the Trevians remained composed, allowing them to hold onto the lead.

“It was a game of momentum,” Riley said. “It kept going up and down.”

The Upper Arlington Golden Bears have players committed to Division 1 schools like Clemson University, Vanderbilt University, and Fairfield University, making the team a good match for the Trevians, who themselves have 14 players committed to play at the collegiate level. 

“Towards the end, it was all mental,” Riley said. “It was really whoever was mentally stronger. From skill, either team could have won.”

The following day, on May 3, the team faced Detroit Country Day, taking what they learned from the previous game and implementing it into their play. 

“We were so excited from our win on Friday because they beat us 11-3 last year,” Riley said. “We had the feeling in our gut and we just wanted to keep it going.”

During the game against Upper Arlington, the team only had five turnovers: a very good number for the Trevians. The Trevs wanted to carry on their mental strength from the previous game and from what they work on in practice and to keep it up during the next game. According to Riley, the team practices visualization and game situations prior to matches.

“We do sprints and we pretend that we mess up, so we’re like ‘Reset.’ You imagine that you just made a turnover and did a sprint,” Anderson said.  

The strong mental performance was important during both games, and the draw controls were, too. While both of the games were draw games, meaning that whoever got possession on the draw circle found success at the net, the dominant 14-2 execution on the draw circle from the Trevians helped lead them to a 16-6 victory.

“We killed the draw game in the second game,” Anderson said. “Having possession leads to winning.”

This success on the draw circle showed in the final score of the game, but also in the record books. Bornhoeft got her 100th career goal, and also her 300th career draw control. 

Following these games, the team plans to continue to work on trusting and playing for each other in upcoming games against Highland Park High School on May 7 and University School of Milwaukee on May 10. 

“Overall, knowing when to reset and never getting to the point of giving up,” Riley said. “You always have to be optimistic. Comebacks are clearly a thing, and we can see that in college lacrosse every day. We just need to keep being positive.”