By S. Quinn DeJoy and J. Murrer

Mar. 30, 2016:  The girls' lacrosse team opened its season yesterday with a resounding 18-4 victory over Albertus Magnus. It could be a good sign for the Broncos, who made it to the state semifinals last year and finished the 2015 season with a 21-2 record.

While the Albertus Magnus victory came easily, the rest of this week is likely to be more challenging. The Broncos scrimmage Darien at home today, and on Friday they travel to Connecticut to scrimmage New Canaan and Southampton. Darien is the top-ranked team in all of New England, and both Darien and New Canaan won Connecticut state championships last year.

In the week before the season opener, the Broncos trained at HoganLax in Orlando, Florida, where they attended clinics, played games, and participated in a teambuilding program that was founded by Eric Kapitulik, a four-year varsity lacrosse player at the Naval Academy and ex-Special Forces officer in the Marines. The goal of Kapitulik's program is "to build better leaders and more cohesive teams."

"Our trip to Florida was fantastic," said Coach Sharon Robinson. "The girls worked hard, had fun, and got two scrimmages in against decent competition. It was a great experience for the team to have good practices on a full field to prepare for our tough schedule ahead."

The training in Florida may have given the girls an edge, but even without special training, the Broncos are a very talented team. In preseason rankings by Lohud, the Bronxville girls, a clear favorite in Class C, are ranked No. 5 for schools of all sizes in Section 1.

Lohud also recognized the top twelve players in Section 1, two of whom hail from Bronxville: senior Lilly Grass and junior Mason Warble. Grass, who is a team co-captain along with Lain Miller and Taylor Sears, scored 120 points for the Broncos last season and earned All-American honors. Junior midfielder Warble, one of the top offensive players on the Bronco team, scored 58 goals and had 13 assists last season. Junior midfielder Ellie Walsh was recognized as one of the top 24 players to watch in Section 1.

The Broncos will face a challenge this weekend when they travel to Manhasset High School to take on a competitive Syosset team at the One Love Springfest.

"I am going to play at University of Michigan with a girl from Darien, so it should be fun to play them," said Grass. "Hopefully our three scrimmages this week will get us prepared for our big game against Syosset on Saturday."

It's opening week for all the Bronco teams. Boys' lacrosse will play its home opener tomorrow, and baseball opens at home on Saturday against Dobbs Ferry. See the schedule below for all the local games. 

Games this Week

3/30: Girls' lacrosse vs. Darien, scrimmage, Chambers Field, 4:30 pm
4/4:   Girls' lacrosse vs. Putnam Valley, Chambers Field, 4:30 pm

3/31: Boys' lacrosse vs. Sleepy Hollow, Chambers Field, 4:45 pm

3/31: Baseball vs. Tuckahoe, Parkway Oval, 4:30 pm
4/2:   Baseball vs. Dobbs Ferry, Lower Scout Field, 11:00 am
4/5:   Baseball vs. Woodlands, Lower Scout Field, 4:30 pm

4/5:   Outdoor track and field vs. Sleepy Hollow, Chambers Field, 4:45 pm

Pictured here (rotating):  The Bronxville girls' lacrosse team headed to Florida over spring break (photo by Mary Walsh); the Bronxville girls' lacrosse team against Albertus Magnus (photo by S. Quinn DeJoy).