Berry Notches Five Goals in Milton High Victory Over Weymouth

With the sweet shot of Jen Berry, the girls lacrosse team emerged with a crucial victory. The sophomore sensation led the way, exploding for five goals, including three in the second half as the Wildcats escaped with a 7-6 win over Weymouth in Thursday’s Bay State Conference match-up at the Weymouth High Turf Field.

The Wildcats now improved to 3-2, and will enjoy a bit of a break before battling archrivals’ Braintree on Tuesday afternoon.

For first-year coach Caitlin Finn, the win served as a huge momentum booster for the Wildcats after trailing 3-0 early in the first half.

“We made some huge adjustments in the second half,’’ said Finn. “We were able to jam the middle, and force (Weymouth) to take some off balanced shots. Our defense was spectacular in the second half and our goalkeeper (Emma Drew) came up big for us when we needed her to.”

Berry, who recorded five goals in the win, now has an astounding 14 points through four games. Scoring three goals in a season opening 13-4 loss to Natick, Berry bounced back with a six point performance (five goals, assist) in the Wildcats 17-2 coasting over Fontbonne Academy. In a 10-1 win over Brookline, Berry recorded a hat trick before the Wildcats suffered a 16-1 loss to Norwood last Friday.

“(Berry) has a great shot, and she just knows where to find the openings in the cage,’’ said Finn. “She shoots with such accuracy, that if you give her the open shot, chances are that she’ll find a way to put it by the opposing goalkeeper. Not only has she been a driving force on our offense, but she’s been immensely huge for us on defense.”

In the game’s opening minutes, Weymouth stormed out to a 3-0 lead. On a breakaway opportunity, Alex King fired a shot that eluded Wildcat goalkeeper Emma Drew, top shelf, with just 1:28 elapsed for the 1-0 lead. Minutes later, Weymouth extended the lead to 2-0 as King struck again. Capitalizing off a turnover at the middle of the field, King weaved through a pair of Wildcat defenders and knifed a shot past a screened Drew.

On the ensuing face-off, Weymouth struck again for a 3-0 lead. Streaking down the center of the field, King rifled a shot that eluded Drew, short side, just seconds later.

“We came out flat out of the gate, and we weren’t moving our feet,’’ said Finn. “We were just slow and we weren’t attacking the cage. We were pretty much in slow motion and we had to make some adjustments after we were down 3-0. To the girls’ credit, they did a great job with those adjustments and we really picked up the pace.”

As the first half progressed, the Wildcats slowly began to regain momentum while creating several quality scoring chances. On a two-on-one, Julia Connell dished a pass to Ines Campbell, who one-timed a shot right into the net of Weymouth goalkeeper Sam Stevenson. Moments later, off an indirect opportunity, the Wildcats nearly capitalized again. Katie Phelan weaved through a pair of Weymouth defenders and whisked a shot that clanked off the far post.

“We had a lot of opportunities, but we just weren’t converting,’’ said Finn. “We were making their goalkeeper look good because we were taking shots right at them. We created some great pressure, but we weren’t scoring.”

Facing a 3-0 deficit in the final minutes of the first half, the Wildcats broke the ice and trimmed the lead to 3-1. Off a cross pass to Julia LeBlanc, Berry one touched a shot that eluded Stevenson, top corner.

Continuing to create pressure in the Weymouth attack zone, the Wildcats closed within 3-2 with 1:01 remaining. Dodging to her right, Berry unloaded a shot that escaped Stevenson short side.

“We started taking more high percentage shots at the cage, and we were converting,’’ said Finn. “We were starting to break through and it was important that we were continuing to make some adjustments as the game moved on into the second half.”

In the final seconds, Weymouth did extend the lead to 4-2 on a Maria DeStefanis breakaway goal, but the Wildcats still maintained the momentum heading into the half.

Off the opening draw in the second half, Connell drove down the field and unloaded a shot that escaped Stevenson, cutting the lead to 4-3.

As the defensive led unit of Jess Sullivan, Katie Walsh and Katie Phelan continued to neutralize Weymouth’s offensive attack, the Wildcats continued its momentum, tying the game with 16:54 remaining. Off an indirect opportunity, Berry released a flickering wrist shot that escaped Stevenson, tying the contest at 4-4.

A goal by Katie Coleman regained the lead for Weymouth at 5-4 before the Wildcats battled to tie the contest just 1:43 later. Dodging a pair of defenders, Campbell delivered a shot that escaped Stevenson, tying the game at 5-5 with 7:04 left.

Seconds later on the ensuing face-off, the Wildcats grabbed a 6-5 lead. Off an odd player rush, Julia LeBlanc spotted an open Berry, who one-touched a shot that escaped the sight of Stevenson with 6:43 left.

With 4:25 remaining, Berry added her fifth goal of the contest as the Wildcats extended the lead to 7-5. On a direct opportunity, Berry rifled a shot that eluded Stevenson.

“(Berry) came up huge for us, and she’s done that for us all season,’’ said Finn. “Our defense did a nice job containing their attack, and it was an overall great performance.”

Despite a pair of penalty corners, Weymouth failed to capitalize as Drew stopped a pair of shots from point blank range.

“(Drew) came up huge for us,’’ said Finn. “She stopped a pair of big shots down the stretch, and came through in the clutch.”

King added her fourth goal, closing the gap to 7-6 with 1:12 remaining, but the Wildcats won the ensuing face-off and held off Weymouth in the final seconds to preserve the win.

“We did a great job possessing the ball and we were able to come through with the victory,’’ said Finn. “The girls gave it a great effort and I’m so proud of them.”