LONGMEADOW — Marblehead’s girls soccer team met its match Thursday evening as the No. 10 Magicians fell to No. 2 Longmeadow 3-1 in the quarterfinals of the Division 2 state tournament.
Longmeadow scored twice in the first half to take a 2-0 lead into halftime. The first came when Cameron Greenman finished a pass over the top from Emersynn Cage (1-0). Fourteen minutes later, Cage went from facilitator to scorer, finding the far corner to double the Lancers’ lead.
Marblehead cut the deficit in the 68th minute when Callie Gilmore converted a penalty kick, but Longmeadow answered a minute later with a goal from Rhaya Manning to restore a two-goal cushion.
Marblehead coach Lisa Wales was proud of her team’s performance — especially in the second half.
“I thought we played much better in the second half. It took us a while to find our rhythm and we started to create more opportunities,” she said. “The goals they scored, we were beaten on uncharacteristic mistakes and individual talent from Longmeadow.”
Being proud is an understatement for how Wales views her team’s season.
“They battled to the end,” she said. “We faced a lot of injuries, like last year, and the mental and physical toughness they showed was unbelievable. This is a special group and as great as they are as soccer players, they are even better people.”
When asked about her seniors, Wales said she’s looking forward to watching their futures.
“This is my third season coaching here and many of the seniors have been with me for all three seasons,” she said. “We pick a word every year for our season, and this year it was ‘faMily,’ with the M standing for Marblehead. We truly are a family and we are going to miss these seniors very much. We really love them.”
The Magicians wrap up with a record of 14-2-5. They defeated No. 23 Walpole and No. 7 Oliver Ames in the state tournament.
