SWAMPSCOTT — There was plenty to celebrate at Blocksidge Field Thursday. Swampscott’s girls lacrosse team not only defeated Northeastern Conference foe Winthrop, 17-5, but senior captain Lilah Caplan registered her 500th career save during the first quarter.
Caplan sat at 498 saves entering the game. After reaching the milestone, the game was paused and the netminder swarmed by teammates.
“It’s a huge milestone,” said Swampscott coach Al Eaton. “I don’t know that I’ve ever had anybody who’s gotten that many — at least since I’ve been here. … I can’t take much credit for what people see out there. She’s an outstanding human being and a great team leader. She keeps everybody grounded and really understands the game well. Her teammates also respect her immensely.”
Swampscott jumped to a 3-0 lead within two minutes, thanks to Cecilia Tripp’s hat trick. The junior finished with four goals, as did freshman Reagan Pelletier.
“Reagan is just a freshman and when she comes in, she’s a terrific draw specialist. She’s a solid player who plays the game beautifully,” Eaton said. “Cecilia is not afraid to go to goal and she has a nose for it. She’s a very dangerous player. Both of them are very difficult to defend for different reasons.”
Swampscott took a 13-1 lead into halftime.
There were second-half positives for Winthrop as senior captain Tegan Pereira scored a pair of goals.
But the Vikings couldn’t conquer Swampscott’s versatility.
“They’re playing together — like a team. In our last game, we had 10 people score goals. We had a bunch of people score again today, but I noticed in the last game, to have 10 people score is crazy,” Eaton said. “Team defense is critical and our defense has done a great job working tightly together. Our offense works the system and they’re unselfish, and more about the team’s success rather than their own individual success. That’s really a treat to coach.”
Swampscott has won seven of its last eight games. The Big Blue look to keep their momentum intact in Gloucester (Tuesday at 4:30 p.m.).
