Fox Lane Girls Lax One Win Away from State Title

The Fox Lane girls lacrosse team  is now only one win away from a state title.

Lindsay Toppe had an eight-point day, and the trio of Sydney Stern, Sammy Jo Tracy and Kate Burbank combined for 11 goals and two assists, as the Foxes sprinted past Section 3 champion Watertown, 19-11, in a New York State Public High School Athletic Association Class B semifinal Friday afternoon at Tompkins Cortland Community College, in Dryden.

At noon on Saturday, Fox Lane (19-3) will meet five-time defending state champion Garden City for the state championship. Garden City advanced with a wild, 16-15, victory over Canandaigua in the other semifinal.

"I know they're good," Fox Lane Coach Bill Broggy said. "I know they're real good. Our girls just have to come out there and play their best. That's all I ever ask of them, and whatever happens, happens. And we're not, 'Oh hey, we're here' and blah blah blah. No. We're going to try and come out and win tomorrow."

The Foxes should feel good about their chances.

Their speed, aggressiveness and skill were on display throughout Friday's semifinal, and the combination overwhelmed the Cyclones. As usual, Toppe was at the center of the offensive production, scoring four goals to go along with four assists.

She said the Foxes' run through states is proof that this team is "no joke."

"It shows we can compete at a high level," she said. "And I think this sets the bar high for the teams of the future that we can't play … how we played previously. We have to keep this level of play the whole time."

Fox Lane scored the game's first two goals and never trailed. Toppe recorded six points in the first half, four of which came in a spurt, where Fox Lane outscored Watertown 8-1 to break open a 4-3 contest.

Stern, Lauren Dichiara and Burbank found the net in succession at the end of the first half to give Fox Lane a 12-4 lead at the break. The closest Watertown got was 17-11 with under 8 minutes left, but Fox Lane found the net two more times to ice it. In truth, the Foxes were never threatened after halftime.

"Definitely ground balls (were key)," said Tracy, who scored three goals and added an assist. "When I did the draw they always got to the ground balls, which was very important. And we moved the ball well."

Tracy was a blur in the midfield, particularly on clears. On the day, Fox Lane won 15 of 25 draws and owned a 35-27 edge in ground balls. Their speed at both ends pressured Watertown into an uncharacteristic number of turnovers.

"We won draws and we pressured them," Broggy said. "That's how we play defense, with pressure."

Burbank and Stern both finished with four goals. DiChiara had two goals and an assist, and Lexi Cannon and Kailey O'Hagan also scored.

O'Hagan, Burbank and Aly Dowey were three of the tallest players on the field, and their length and speed caused problems all over for the Cyclones.

Now, the Foxes can smell their first state championship, and will enter Saturday's game as a perceived underdog – but a confident one.

"It means everything," Tracy said. "We worked so hard and we practiced so hard, and to get here is like 'Yes!' I can't even explain it. It's just amazing."