Great team effort by the Lady Dons
It was a night to remember at the Bill Brown Aquatics Center. The undefeated Miramonte Matadors versus the Acalanes Dons. The whistle blew and the sprinters swam but it was unclear who gained possession which ended in the first jump ball of the game between sophomore Ella Del Rosario and Miramonte’s Rosalie Hassett.
The Lady Dons were prepared and started off strong. Some great shots were taken right off the bat but neither Acalanes nor Miramonte could get the ball in the cage for the first few minutes of the quarter. Miramonte scored first, but sophomore Ella Del Rosario put the Dons on the board with a goal of her own. Less than a minute later, the Mats scored two more goals with a score of 3-1. Senior Wendy Heffelfinger saw an opportunity and launched a rocket into the net and less than a minute later, scored another beautiful shot to tie the game 3-3 at the end of the quarter.
Senior Wendy Heffelfinger ready to launch her shot
The second quarter started with strong defense on both sides, but the stands were cheering on their Lady Dons and Ella scored another goal to give Acalanes the lead. Miramonte fired right back to tie the game. The quarter ended with Senior Brooklyn Plomp scoring on a powerplay and less than a minute later, the Mats did the same, 5-5. With only 11 seconds left in the quarter, Wendy passed to Brooklyn who shot one in to give the Lady Dons a 6-5 lead at halftime.
Senior Brooklyn Plomp swimming down the pool
The third quarter was scoreless due to strong defense and epic stops by freshman Adelyn Horciza. The score remained 6-5 with Acalanes in the lead.
Sophomore Addison Dankworth wins the jump ball and gives the Dons a key possession
The final quarter of the game started and chants could be heard in the stands. Brooklyn scored on a powerplay giving Acalanes their first 2-point lead of the game. Miramonte didn’t let that stand for long and fired two back-to-back shots to tie up the game. A penalty shot was called and Ella shot with all the confidence in the world giving Acalanes the lead 8-7.
Ella Del Rosario shooting a 5-meter penalty shot to take the lead
Miramonte didn’t like that one bit and scored on their powerplay which tied the game..again! Wendy, who back in 2019 was a middle-schooler cheering on her sisters the last time Acalanes beat Miramonte, beat the goalie, and scored a goal with 1:27 second left on the clock.
Wendy Heffelfinger about to shoot the winning goal
Timeouts were called on both sides, but neither team could capitalize, and with 31 seconds left on the clock, Miramonte had the ball, set up their play, and as the whistle blew and the crowd was holding their breath and then Ella stole the ball! An Acalanes timeout was called, strategies were discussed and the Lady Dons knew that only 22 seconds was left on the clock! They passed the ball with precision and when the buzzer rang, the victory belonged to the Lady Dons!
