The Orange Lutheran
girls' lacrosse team has returned to the field and is aiming for an even stronger CIF postseason performance following their Division 3 quarterfinal run last spring.
The Lancers will be led by the program's top goal scorer
Chloe Mora. The senior broke the school record last season when she tallied more than 100 goals. Sophomores
Makena Anthony and
Faith Reilly return after making an immediate impact their freshman year. And senior goalkeeper
Mia Gonzalez is prepared to step up as a defensive anchor for the team.
From a leadership standpoint, the Lancers will be led by Mora, as well as senior
Sydney Lee and junior
Kaylie Whitsell. The trio brings a unique skill set and perspective to the team, creating a well-rounded leadership core that will play a pivotal role in fostering team chemistry.
"Each of them are very different types of leaders, which I think is really important to have so that everybody on the team has someone that they're comfortable going to," says OLu girls lacrosse head coach Allie Kyte.
The program will be fielding 45 players across JV and varsity teams, with 25 freshmen, including Flynn Kremer and Anna Paquette. This growth is partly attributed to "PE takeovers" that OLu's girls lacrosse has hosted at several local Lutheran partner schools.
"It's really made the exposure bigger to girls who maybe have never even heard of what lacrosse was before," says Kyte. "So getting exposure for the sport has helped for sure."
The Lancers will be taking on a competitive
schedule this season, including non-league games versus Yorba Linda, Edison and Portola. The varsity squad will be heading up to Santa Barbara to face off against Dos Pueblos and play in the Gold Coast Invitational March 5 - 8. Trinity League play begins April 2 when OLu hosts JSerra, and the Lancers will kick the season off on February 11 when they travel to Beckman.
With their eyes on a deep playoff run, the program's theme this season is centered around Matthew 5:14 and being a "light" to their teammates, school and community, both on and off the field.
"We're hoping to share the goodness of God at all games, practices and events, while staying competitive and having fun," says Kyte, "and with that, we will make sure that we're balancing that at all times."
