Girls varsity lacrosse (2-4 West Bay Athletic League Skyline Division) pulled out a hard-fought comeback victory 21-15 against Woodside Priory on Friday, April 12, despite trailing by four in the third quarter. 

The game was close throughout the first half, as the Panthers led 5-3 after the first quarter. While it looked as though the game would be tied going into halftime, junior Sophie Berkovits scored just before the buzzer sounded to pull Burlingame ahead 8-7. 

Burlingame was also faced with the difficult challenge of defending Priory’s star player, senior Stella Axe, who committed to play D1 Lacrosse at the University of Richmond. Before the matchup, the Panthers spent time preparing strategies to help ensure Axe would not go on any scoring runs. 

“We would put two people on [Axe] or we would play our best against the best. So usually [sophomore Haleh Ansari] would go against [Axe] because [Axe] was really fast and she was very good,” freshman Mia Hofmann said.

However, early into the third quarter, Axe began to take over. She won multiple draws, leading to four consecutive Priory goals, which Axe either scored or assisted. 

However, when it looked most dire for Burlingame, Ansari responded with four consecutive goals of her own to tie up the game once more. Senior captain Zaina Michael attributed the win to both the attackers and the teamwork present. 

“I think the attack played exceptionally well, we have a great team of shooters,” Michael said. “And I think the team chemistry was really strong, especially, we had patience on attack, and we kept settling the ball and passing it around and looking for the shot, as well as, passing to teammates.”

Hofmann also played a key role in helping Burlingame to maintain and extend their lead with her four goals and one assist. With this crucial change in momentum, it pushed the Panthers to lead 15-13 at the end of the third quarter. 

“I feel like this whole team was kind of nervous [after the four-point scoring run] and so we all put in more energy into the game,” Hofmann said. “We used more energy to get the ground balls and we were more motivated to score.” 

Burlingame’s defense dominated in the fourth quarter, shutting down Priory by holding them to just two goals. Sophomore goalie Anya Malhotra, who was playing her first varsity game, was crucial to the Panther’s second-half defensive dominance. Malhotra exceeded all expectations — making eight saves, sealing the game. Even with the success of this matchup, Michael still recognizes Burlingame can improve going forward. 

“It’s good to fixate on one player especially when they’re really good and carrying the team, but also not take the other players for granted,” Michael said. “Because [the other players] also have skill and they’ll pass it around.”