CdM girls stun No. 2 Foothill in quarterfinals

TUSTIN – Corona del Mar's girls lacrosse team pulled off a major upset Thursday, knocking off No. 2 seed Foothill, 11-6, in the quarterfinals of the U.S. Lacrosse Division 1 South playoffs at Foothill.

The No. 7-seed Sea Kings move on to the semifinals Saturday at 3 p.m. at Aliso Niguel against No. 3 Beckman. It is the first time Corona del Mar has reached the semifinals.

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Lacrosse playoffs: Thursday's scores, highlights

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Gabby Smith, Cassidy Napolitano and Kacie Kline had two goals each for the Sea Kings (16-3). Goalkeeper Sarah Hostetler led the defense with nine saves.

"She displayed so much confidence, the clears, everything looked so great," said Corona del Mar coach Aly Vislocky.

Haley O'Donoghue scored two goals for Foothill, which was the preseason No. 1 pick in Orange County and had hopes of winning its first county title.

Corona del Mar was coming off an emotional 19-18 victory over Capistrano Valley on Tuesday in the opening round and the momentum carried over from that match as the Sea Kings jumped out to a 6-3 lead at halftime.

"I think the energy from that game really carried over to this game," Vislocky said. "They were the best I've ever seen them play. They were on top of it, there were not many errors. If there was an error, they fought through it and tried to get that ball back."

Corona del Mar extended its lead to 9-3 in the second half before Foothill countered with two goals. But the Sea Kings regained control and finished strong.

The victory moves the Sea Kings on to the semifinals against Beckman, a team it shared the Pacific Coast League title with. It also avenged a quarterfinal round loss to Foothill last year in the playoffs.

"It's the first time we've been there," Vislocky said. "I'm happy to see the improvement and the heart of these girls getting them at least one game further."

Vislocky was pleased with the balanced offensive attack.

"We have five, six or seven players who can score and get the ball in the back of the net," Vislocky said.

The defense was also solid.

Kylie Mulvaney, Ashley Kelegian, Shannon Griffin and Meredith Davin played the entire game on defense and were outstanding, Vislocky said.