Crescenta Valley girls’ lacrosse outlasts Westridge for double-overtime win

PASADENA — Lizzy Hales had a brief moment to make an observation.

With an opportunity to win a back-and-forth match, the Crescenta Valley High freshman girls’ lacrosse player studied the opposing goalkeeper before launching an eight-meter shot.

Hales scored with 2:23 left in double-overtime to lift visiting Crescenta Valley to a 9-8 nonleague win against Westridge on Wednesday.

“I wanted to score by shooting through the goalkeeper’s legs,” said Hales, a midfielder who finished with two goals. “I was thinking to myself that I had to make the shot or else we keep on playing.

“It turned out to be a nerve-wracking game that we were able to win. I’m just going out there trying to live up to my expectations. You put it all on the line and I love the sport.”

It marked the second time this season that Hales scored on an eight-meter shot.

Crescenta Valley (8-4) defeated Westridge (7-6) for the second time this season. The Falcons picked up a 7-4 home win in the first meeting April 6. Crescenta Valley finished second in the Pacific League behind Chaminade after tying for third with La Cañada last season. The Falcons qualified for the USA Lacrosse Southern Section North Division playoffs. Playoff pairings are set to be unveiled Sunday. However, Crowther said he would make a decision as to whether the Falcons will participate in the postseason since several players have Advanced Placement testing that could conflict.

The Falcons and Tigers have had a brief history of playing overtime matches. The teams played two overtime tilts last season.

“It’s an exciting game, except for me as the coach,” Crescenta Valley Coach Boz Crowther said. “We seem to be on paper a marginally better team than Westridge. When we play Westridge, you can throw away the paper because we always seem to go to overtime against them.

“We train our players to watch the tendencies of the goalkeeper. Lizzy saw something to her liking and made a nice shot to win it.”

The Falcons, who finished second in the Pacific League behind Chaminade after tying for third last season with La Cañada, tied it at 8 on a goal by Madeline Heeg with 7:54 left in the second half.

Heeg’s goal came a little more than five minutes after Rachel Dillman gave the Tigers an 8-7 lead.

Crescenta Valley held a 7-5 halftime advantage. Abby Sheklow scored two goals in a 50-second span late in the first half. Sheklow, a junior attacker, finished with a team-high three goals.

“We went up against a Westridge team that worked so hard,” Sheklow said. “They played a great game.

“We wanted it so much in the end. Lizzy made a great shot to win it and we’re so proud of her. There’s a lot of skill on our team and we are trying to get better.”

Crescenta Valley received 10 saves from goalkeeper Sabrina White, including two in the first overtime. Dillman and Quincy Foster had two goals each for Westridge. Dillman’s first goal gave the Tigers a 2-0 lead with 23:34 left in the first half.

Sheklow knotted it at 3 with 8:49 to go.

Crescenta Valley will participate in a nonleague home match at 3:30 p.m. Friday against West Ranch.