BATH

When Morse visited Gardiner/Hall-Dale for a girls high school lacrosse game on May 4, Shipbuilders co-coach Jess Avery felt that her team was playing more like individuals rather than as a unit on offense.

In the rematch on Friday at McMann Field, Morse played like the unit Avery felt her Shipbuilders could be, and the result definitely showed in a 17-5 Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference win.

Morse finished the regular season with a 10-2 mark and will host a quarterfinal down the road, while the Tigers fell to 4-7.

“We have been working really hard on everybody touching the ball, and Gardiner typically drives and is used to defending the drive,” said Avery. “The more we moved the ball, the harder it was for them to find the ball and defend. Before we were trying to do it alone. Now we are doing it as seven.”

That strategy worked early as Morse jumped out to a 7-1 lead in the game’s first 10 minutes. Isabella Monbouquette and Paige Daigle each scored twice in the early run, with Amanda Gagne, Noa Sreden and Emily Martin adding a goal.

Gardiner/ Hall- Dale tried to hang in, getting two first-half goals from Anna Chadwick, and one each from Evelyn Hinkley, Haile Lovely and Madyson Smith.

But, Morse’s offense kept the pressure on, scoring 13 goals in the opening frame for a 13-5 halftime lead. If not for Tigers goaltender Julia Hinkley, who made 12 of her 19 saves in the opening half, the deficit would have been a lot more.

Karen Yurek

Friday was Senior Night for the seven Morse seniors — Daigle, Gagne, Sreden, Emilie Platteter, Monbouquette, KK Fifield and Karen Yurek. The last of those seniors, Yurek, has worked hard to get into the Morse lineup. As Avery said, Yurek is the spiritual leader of the Shipbuilders.

“Karen has always been one of our biggest people to get the team going, bring the spirit to the bench, whether she played or didn’t play,” said Avery of Yurek. “If you look at the stats from the beginning of the year, she actually led us in scoring. She came out ready to go and on fire.

“We used two words to describe each senior. Two words we use for Karen were ‘Motivator’ and ‘Team.’ She is always about the team.”

For Yurek, who had a goal and an assist on Friday, being part of this year’s squad has been exciting.

“This has been so much fun, and our team has a really close bond,” said Yurek. “It is so rewarding, especially with the support of my coaches and my teammates. My teammates are so wanting of giving me that pass, assist to give me that shot. Gardiner and us have always been strong rivals, but I feel that we have broken down how they play defense. That gave us an advantage in this game.”

In the second half, goals by Martin and Daigle brought about the 10-goal running clock, and the Shipbuilders closed the game with two more tallies as Martin and Emma Warner finished off Gardiner/Hall-Dale.

Daigle led the Shipbuilders, scoring five goals and dishing out three assists, while Gagne picked up two goals and four helpers, with Martin and Monbouquette each with a hat trick. Sreden chipped in two goals and one assist.

In goal, Morse’s Zenaide McCarthy made one save in the first half, while Abby Sreden turned away four second-half shots from the Tigers.

The quarterfinals are slated to be held around June 8, giving the Shipbuilders nearly two weeks to prepare. Avery said her team will remain ready.

“We will have to keep spirits up and have the players show up every day,” said Avery. “We just have to keep it together and be ready to play. We are fine-tuning now, not so much working on skill.”

Morse held a 41-12 shot advantage and a 17-7 edge in draw controls. Martin led Morse with five ground balls, while Noa Sreden had four.

Morse 17,
Gardiner/H-D 5

Friday, at Bath
G/HD — 5 0 — 5
Morse — 13 4 — 17
Goals — (G/HD) Evelyn Hinkley,
Anna Chadwick 2, Haile Lovely,
Madyson Smith; (Mo) Isabella
Monbouquette 3, Paige Daigle 5,
Amanda Gagne 2, Noa Sreden 2,
Emily Martin 3, Karen Yurek,
Emma Warner.
Assists — (G/HD) Lauren Chadwick, Evelyn Hinkley; (Mo) Karen
Yurek, Emily Martin, Noa Sreden,
Amanda Gagne 4, Paige Daigle 3.
Shots — Morse 41,
Gardiner/Hall-Dale 12.
Saves — (G/HD) Julia Hinkley 19;
(Mo) Zenaide McCarthy 1, Abby
Sreden 4.
Draw controls — Morse 17; Gardiner/ Hall-Dale 7.
Records — Morse 10-2; Gardiner/ Hall-Dale 4-7.
Up next for the Shipbuilders —
Class A North quarterfinal, date
and time TBA.