Girls lacrosse: first title

Friday, May. 27, 2016

DRAPER — The Juan Diego Catholic High School girls lacrosse team defeated Roy High School 10-8 in the May 21 Division II State Championship game to claim the school’s first lacrosse title. 

The Soaring Eagle lacrosse team knew the championship game was going to be tough, said Sage Johnson, head lacrosse coach. “We can never underestimate any team going into the state championship game,” she said. “We had already played Roy during the season and ended up beating them by about 10 goals, but we didn’t want to think about that; we knew the game was going to be a really scrappy and difficult game.” 

Juan Diego came out strong in the championship game taking a 4-0 lead, but Roy kept fighting their way back into the game, said Johnson. “They are a really good team and the game was close the entire time,” she said. “I really think our seniors stepped up, put the team on their back and carried them to the win. It was a great game.” 

To reach the championship game, Juan Diego beat Viewmont High School by one goal in the semifinal game and also defeated Davis High School in the quarterfinals. 

“The games have all been really close,” Johnson said. “We just tried to stay calm and collected going into the state championship round. We knew if we played as a team and nobody tried to win individually, we would end up winning the game. The girls were really driven by themselves; it didn’t take much from myself or Amanda Abraham, the other coach, to motivate them to win. We just had to keep them level-headed and on our game plan so they didn’t get too flustered.”

During regular season play, the Soaring Eagle team had a tough schedule, Johnson said. “For being a smaller school, we play well against the bigger school teams,” she said. “The teams are not divided by class; the top 12 teams play in the Division I bracket and the next 12 play in Division II. We were the No. 2 seed in Division II.”