Friday,
April 10, 2015
By Rich Barton
NJS.com Staff Writer
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Ramsey's Bridget Bohmert had two goals and two assists to help the Rams to a comfortable 18-6 win over Clifton Thursday afternoon. |
RAMSEY – In its first year as a varsity program, the Ramsey girls lacrosse team began the season without much in the way of expectations. But not only have the Rams been competitive so far this year, they've won some games and looked good doing it.
On Thursday Ramsey continued their impressive first season. Erica Lis won five consecutive draws and the Rams scored six goals in a 2:54 span to take a commanding lead before cruising to a third straight victory with an 18-6 win over Clifton at Ramsey High School.
”It’s been a fun start to the season," said Ramsey head coach Liz Henky. "We’re excited for what’s to come over the rest of this season and having the program grow as a whole."
Clifton had its share of chances the game’s first three minutes. Tiffany Richards and Olivia DeMuro both had shots from point-blank range but they were turned away on saves by Ramsey goalie Bailey Palumbo. Ramsey grabbed a 2-0 lead on unassisted goals by Mary Pless and Alex Peller before Lis sparked the quick burst.
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Clifton's Olivia DeMuro paced the Mustangs with three goals. |
Lis won five consecutive draws and Ramsey was quick on the edge of the circle to secure those draws. The Rams also showed two positive signs during that six-goal stretch. First of all, five different players scored, showing good offensive balance. Secondly, three of those goals were netted through running their offense efficiently. Reece Levine capped the run off of a feed from defensive standout Sarah Reyes-Guerra to make it 8-0 just over 7 minutes into the game.
Clifton made a run to get back in the game with a pair of goals each from Tiffany Richards and Olivia DeMuro to trim the lead to 9-4. The Rams answered by dominating possession, again, thanks to Lis winning draws over the final nine minutes of the half. Lis scored twice in a 6-0 spurt that gave Ramsey a comfortable 15-4 lead at the half.
“The girls around the circle really work their butts off to get the ball off the draw, that makes my job easy,” said Lis, a sophomore. “It’s really awesome playing with my teammates and watching us get better every game. Even though this is our first year as a varsity team, a lot of us have been playing together for a while so we’re pretty fundamentally sound. We’ve played our hearts out and now we see that effort paying off.”
Ten players found the back of the net for Ramsey (3-2), led by Levine’s four goals. Lis had three goals with Bridget Bohmert, Rhiannon Brown and Maddy Cheyne each adding two goals apiece. Kelsey Liebmann, Sydney Cozza and Reyes-Guerra also scored. The Rams held a 29-11 advantage in shots.
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Kelsey Liebmann was one of 10 Ramsey players to score a goal. |
DeMuro (three goals) and Richards (two goals) accounted for all of the offense for Clifton (1-4). Clifton goalie Camila Fermin had nine saves.
“They won a bunch of draws in a row and we showed our lack of experience in how to defend in transition,” said Clifton head coach Amanda Gryszkin. “We can’t get into a running match with the more athletic teams. So when we can’t gain possession off the draws, it makes it difficult for us.
"A lot of our girls are still learning the basics of the game. Despite the score today, I can see the improvement of our team in certain areas.”
The win put the Rams over the .500 mark for the season and has given them plenty of momentum with the heart of their schedule still to come.
“We’re working hard together and I can see their drive to become a successful team,” added Henky. “We had a lot of different players score (Thursday) and a lot of assists, which I like to see. But it’s the midfield and defense that really make this team go and they do all the dirty work that doesn’t show up in the box score."
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