RC Girls Lax Dominates

,

Mulitalo, Nye Produce Big Numbers In 26-4 Rout Of Titans

The Rockbridge County High School girls lacrosse team picked up another convincing win over a Region 4D opponent on Monday of last week, rolling to a 26-4 victory over Hidden Valley in a weather-shortened game in Lexington.

Anna Nye racked up 12 points and 12 draw controls for the Wildcats (4-2), tallying nine goals and three assists and helping RC to an overall 23-7 advantage on the draw circle. Lola Mulitalo scored eight goals for the ’Cats, while Josie Caldwell posted three goals and three assists.

Kate Kadela recorded three goals, one assist and three draw controls for the Titans, who fell to 3-3.

The game was called with 4:35 remaining in the fourth quarter due to lightning in the vicinity.

Mulitalo notched six of her markers inside the first 6:29 of game time, including a goal just 12 seconds into the contest. After Kadela tied it at 1-1 on a free-position shot with 8:46 left in the first quarter, the Wildcats reeled off six unanswered tallies. Nye, who scored in the final two seconds of each of the three full quarters, then delivered a buzzer-beater to put RC ahead 9-2 after one.

When Mulitalo and Nye are firing on all cylinders, the Wildcats’ offense has proven nearly impossible for regional opponents to defend.

“Lola and Anna have a way of using their athleticism to find the open space on attack,” RC head coach Susan Nye said. “They both have great stick skills and an aggressive change of direction. They also have a very high lacrosse IQ, so even when a play is not running efficiently, they find a way to score.”

The Wildcats kept up their dominant ways in the second quarter, outpacing HV 7-1 to assume a 16-3 halftime lead. RC proceeded to outscore the Titans 7-0 in the third frame and 3-1 in the fourth – though Kadela grabbed the last goal of the game, scoring just 20 seconds before play was suspended due to the weather.

Nadia Gaydos snared eight draw controls for RC. The junior, who produced a season-saving caused turnover in the final minute of regulation during the Wildcats’ overtime win over Powhatan in the 2024 Class 4 state quarterfinals, has also become the linchpin on the defensive end.

“Nadia is an extremely aggressive player, which helps on the [draw] circle,” Coach Nye said. “Nadia is also a great force on defense and is a fabulous one-on-one defender. … She is the vocal leader on defense, and her communication allows the defense to work as one.”

Alyssa Hunter produced three saves between the pipes for the Wildcats. Emma McKnight and Ruby Goodhart registered two goals apiece, and Emma Johnson added a goal and two assists. Calli Anderson had two assists and three draw controls for the Titans.

After narrow early-season losses to playoff nemesis Western Albemarle and a strong private school program in Covenant, the Wildcats seem to be finding their midseason form. Coach Nye has been thrilled with her team’s energy – so now the focus will turn to honing the execution.

“The strength of this team is their never-quit attitude. The players keep playing aggressively no matter what the score,” the RC coach said. “On defense, we are looking to be more consistent with the off-ball players, getting cutters and slides. On offense, we are continuing to work on moving the ball faster and finding the best pass instead of the first pass.”

RC will visit Cave Spring tomorrow, Thursday, with the varsity game only at 6 p.m., followed by a 7:15 p.m. varsity contest at William Byrd on Monday. The Wildcats will then return home to play host to Salem on Thursday, May 1, starting with junior varsity action at 5:30 p.m., with the varsity game scheduled to follow at 7:15.