The Goal

By Emily I.

            My day started by going to my best friends’ goodbye party, she was moving to Florida in May. It was around 10 o’clock. It was a lot of fun; we played games in her backyard and had a lot of sweets.  The party ended at one o’clock and I had thirty minutes before the lacrosse game. They were our biggest competition we had never gone a season without losing at least one game.  So far neither of us had lost a game. 

            It was a cool April afternoon, about 60 degrees.  The wind was blowing in my face as I walked down the track to where my team was.  My sister Bella was by my side, she was on the team too.  My coaches told us to hurry up because we were always the last ones there.  When we got there I was put on the field and Caitria was taken off.  Bella was on the bench because she is not really supposed to be on the team.  She was playing up because well, she is pretty good.  Caitria was doing the draw, that’s when our to sticks pull backwards to try to get the ball in the middle. So I had to do it against Megan.  She was on my club team, Integrity, at the time.  I won the draw and passed it down to Kailyn.  She went to the goal and scored.

            At halftime the score was 7-8, the opposing team was winning.  That was the first time this season we were ever losing. My coach pulled me to the side and told me he was keeping in for the second half.

 “Kswiss, (that was my nickname he gave me) he said, I need you to win me this game.”  The game started up again and they went to the goal.  Marley, the most amazing goalie ever, stopped it.  Katie got the ball and started running down the field, but the girl on the other team checked her and she lost it. The check was illegal, and my coach started yelling at the referees. Katie then checked the girl and she got a penalty for it.  The girl ran up the field and scored another goal.  The score was 7-9.  I was getting really tired so my coach took me out.

            The draw went up, and Caitria caught it.  She ran down the field and went behind the goal where she called “Jiggling Gorillas”.  That’s when I go beside the goal and everyone else lines up and they start picking off each other.  That play always worked.  Ashley was a really strong Offensive player; she caught the ball and went into shoot.  She made it.  The clock said 2 minutes on it, time was running out.  My coach put me back in and I did the draw.  I got it and threw a long pass to Ashley, and then started sprinting up the field.  Ashley caught it and went to score.  She missed and the girl on the other team and I started running for the ball to gain possession.  She got it and I followed her all the way up to 50 yard line.  Then Katie and Caroline got her. She threw a pass to the girl that was in front of the goal.  The girl missed, and Marley saved it.

            Time was running out.   My coach started screaming “pass it to Kswiss” so she threw me the ball and it was  intercepted.  The girl seemed surprised I could tell it was her first interception of the season. 

I could hear my coach on the sidelines saying “it’s over, it’s over.”

            But it wasn’t over I checked the girl… it was my first legal check of the season.  My stick hit her stick below her shoulder.  I was freaking out, but I knew that I had to get to the goal.  I ran so fast, everyone was yelling to go to the goal, I did just that.  Their defense doubled teamed me so I went behind to start up a play.  My coach yelled “Forget the play Kswiss, there is only 10 seconds left.” So I yelled “Cherokee”, they all looked at me like I was crazy. I felt stupid for saying that.  Then I remembered that was a play for my club team.  So it had to be all me. So I faked to my right hand then started running that way just a little bit. I then quickly switched to my left hand and crease rolled.  It works every time. I shot at the top right hand corner. It was the best place to shoot because most goalies are right-handed so their sticks fall at the left-hand side.  I made it.