The Dougherty Valley women’s lacrosse team lost to the Foothill Falcons 15-3 at its third home game of the season on March 22.

The first half of the game started with Dougherty senior Mei Lani Ferreira and Foothill sophomore Nikki Trueblood fighting for possession of the ball. Nine minutes into the game, the Wildcats scored their first goal, but the Falcons soon tied the score 1-1. The Wildcats persisted and exemplified superior offensive strategies, raising the score 2-1 in their favor with four minutes left.

Junior midfielder Alyssa O’Brien expanded on some of the plays made, stating that a key moment in the game occurred when DV goalie Kareena Naran made an exceptional save and the team “transitioned the ball up the field, leading to a goal.”

The Falcons stayed on the Wildcats’ tails as Trueblood scored a second goal, tying the score with three minutes remaining. Foothill maintained possession of ball for the remainder of the half, and juniors Audriana Templeman and Kayleigh Montana raised the Falcons’ score to 4-2 in the last minute. The momentum of the game shifted in favor of the Falcons as they held the lead moving into the second half.

“I think our biggest challenge just comes down to working together as a team and simultaneously trying to come back from a large point deficit after momentum from the opponent,” junior defender Erin Ku stated. “We did really well starting off, but we need to work on communicating and our stamina.”

Opening the second half on a strong note, the Falcons immediately gained possession of the ball and scored their fifth goal, following an attempted score by the Wildcats. Shortly after, Montana scored on a penalty, raising the score to 6-2 with 20 minutes left on the clock.

DV stepped up its game, using more advanced defensive strategies and stick work in attempts to halt the Falcons’ explosive offense. The Wildcats continuously won draws at the beginning of the game, but O’Brien wishes that the team improve on their ball possession in the future, claiming that “sometimes the draws determine who wins games.”

Wildcats’ junior attacker Atian Garcia stated that the team’s biggest challenge was transitioning into attack after they won the ball on defense. Garcia added that the team “quickly got by their defense” but had a difficult time scoring against the Falcons.

Continuing into the second half, Foothill’s impressive offensive strategies claimed them another back-to-back victory as they increased  their advantage to 8-2. Subsequent to the Falcons’ winning streak, the Wildcats reclaimed their territory by scoring a goal to end the half.  For the remainder of the game, the Falcons dominated, continuously extending their lead with 14 minutes left on the clock and ultimately earning a 15-3 victory over the Wildcats.

Ku, Garcia and O’Brien commented on the team’s deteriorating morale toward the middle of the second half. They had begun to give up when they were down a few goals and were unable to make their shots. Their weakening mental strength contributed to their disheartening loss against the Foothill Falcons. In addition, O’Brien described the challenge of scoring against Foothill.

“Our biggest challenge facing Foothill was definitely making our shots. Their goalie was very good, and we were being too predictable when shooting,” O’Brien said.

The Wildcats will next face off Amador at home on April 12.