EL DORADO HILLS, Calif. – Junior Keira Miles scored three goals, all in the fourth quarter and two of which were assisted by senior Olivia Hamm, as St. Francis fell to Oak Ridge, 15-3, in the nightcap of a Sierra Foothill League girls' lacrosse doubleheader Saturday night.
The Troubadours slip to 2-1, both in league play and overall. The Trojans remain undefeated with a 3-0 mark, 2-0 against the SFL, having combined for a 47-14 advantage in three games thus far. Saturday's nightcap represented a rematch for last year's inaugural Sac-Joaquin Section championships.
Hamm and Miles also led St. Francis in draw controls with four and three, respectively. Oak Ridge dominated that category in the early going and thus enjoyed possession in its attacking third for the vast majority of the first three quarters as part of a 15-0 start. The Troubies did have opportunities in the first half, but Trojan goalkeeper Kaley Gunning came up saves against Miles, Sara Ellis and Zia Smith. The stop against Smith was arguably the most spectacular: the Troubie senior rolled around the right side of the crease and fired on target at the near low corner, but Gunning deflected enough of the blast to keep her net claer.
Miles finally got the Troubies on the board at the 9:24 mark in the fourth, converting the eight meter after drawing a shooting space call. Hamm won the subsequent draw and assisted on Miles' second goal less than a minute later. Then after Jayel Miller posted back-to-back saves against OR leading scorer Caitlin Beckman with about four minutes left in the game, Hamm connected with Miles yet again a 3:07.
St. Francis junior varsity preceded the varsity with a 17-1 loss. In a similar arc to their older sisters, the Troubie jayvees surrendered 10 unanswered goals before sophomore Lucia Shepard put her team on the board with a successful eight-meter chance with 2:25 left in the third. The Trojans also dominated the draw in the opener, with St. Francis winning just four of the 22 draws – with two draw controls coming by virtue of a foul.
The Troubies return to action at home with an SFL doubleheader against Granite Bay. Game times are 5:30 and 7:15 p.m. at Mather Sports Complex.
