MATHER, Calif. – Senior midfielder Keira Miles posted her fourth double hat trick of the year and the 11th of her career, while freshman Gilliam Hamm chipped in another three goals as St. Francis dispatched Granite Bay, 12-8, in Sierra Foothill League girls' lacrosse action at Mather Sports Complex Thursday night.

The Troubadours improve to 8-3 for the season, and 7-3 in league play. This keeps them all alone in third place in the SFL race, with Del Oro (9-0) and Oak Ridge (8-1) on top. Davis held a 5-3 record entering Thursday's road game at winless Whitney. The Grizzlies slip to 7-5 overall with a 4-5 conference record. The SF win also offsets a 13-12 setback at Granite Bay on March 10.

Sophomore Skye Smith added two more goals while senior Jade Abalateo accounted for the remaining score. Abalateo also won five draw controls, just ahead of Miles' four. Junior Natalia Zitelli picked up two more DCs, while leading the Troubies with three ground balls.

St. Francis fell into an early 2-0 hole in the first 7:23 of play, failing to connect on its first four shots. Miles drew an eight-meter foul and converted the shot to get her team on the board with a second left in the first quarter, then Smith succeeded on back-to-back trips to the arc early in the second to lift SF to a 3-2 lead. Granite Bay senior Sarah Radler equalized to 3-3 with her drive at the 5:50 mark in the second, but Abalateo assisted Miles on a goal with 4:16 to put the Troubies back on top. However, that lead did not last: Grizzly senior Brooke Brommeland scored on a delayed whistle to tie the proceedings at 4-4 less than a minute later.

The Troubies then claimed the lead for good on two spectacular eight-meter chances: Abalateo buried her shot with barely a step into the arc with 0:44 left in the half to take a 5-4 lead, then Hamm's pump fake made it 6-4 with just 13 ticks remaining before the break.

Hamm and Miles each hit two more eight-meter shots to start the third, then Miles assisted Hamm on a score after the ensuing draw to bump the Troubie margin to 9-4. GB senior Paulina Spencer found the back of the net twice to bring her team back to within three at 9-6 with 2:51 left in the third, as St. Francis weathered nearly four full minutes of short-handed play due to consecutive yellow cards.

With the Troubies holding onto the 10-6 lead going into the fourth, an unusual set of circumstances came into play. The south field at Mather Sports Complex was closed for maintenance, making the weather system in the San Joaquin valley visible on the north field. Lightning protocol was approximately 30 minutes away, meaning the fourth quarter needed to transpire quickly to avoid a delay or suspension. St. Francis dominated possession in this final frame, thanks to its work on the draw plus key ground balls by Zitelli on the defensive end. The Troubies worked the clock so successfully that the 12 minutes of the fourth quarter took a mere 15 minutes of real time.

Another Grizzly senior, Tessa McClure, managed two goals in the fourth, including one off a save by SF freshman Britten Sires. But in the final minutes, McClure slammed into Miles to earn a yellow card. This not only resulted in the sixth Miles goal but also left Granite Bay down a player for the final 100 seconds of the game.

The varsity win followed a 7-3 setback for St. Francis junior varsity. Granite Bay opened with six unanswered before Elena Petrakis, Maura McManus and Molly Smallenberger scored Troubie goals. McManus and Hope Sperber posted GB totals of five and four, respectively, to help slow the Grizzly offense.

St. Francis lacrosse returns to action on Tuesday for an SFL road doubleheader at Whitney. First draws are 5:30 p.m. for JV, 7:15 for varsity.