Titus Slaughter

Cathedral’s Girls Lacrosse team hyping each other up before a game against Guerin Catholic. The team had been mentally and physically preparing for this game, as they knew Guerin would be tough competition. Sarah Coleman said, “It was obviously going to be a hard game since they [Guerin] won state last year and was our first whole game we’ve played this season.”

The girl’s lacrosse season has officially kicked off. After a tough year last season that has been referred to as a “rebuilding year”, the girls are more eager than ever to come back stronger this year. This team is described as being very hardworking, competitive, and motivated. Not a lot of seniors were lost last year, which means this senior class of ‘24 is very solid. They have had two games so far this season, and one of them was canceled because of thunder and lightning.

Looking at the first game of the season, it didn’t go as the Lady Irish had planned. They started out the game versus Brebeuf Jesuit with a lead of 3-2. The game then ended up getting postponed due to lighting, but the team looks forward to playing them for another time on May 13th.

The second game of this year also didn’t live up to the expectations of the Lady Irish. Guerin Catholic proved to have an impressive lacrosse program, earning a record of 14-2 in the 2022-23 season and being ranked very high in the Indiana girl’s lacrosse state rankings, ending the season with a state championship. Cathedral fought very hard, but fell short with a score of 4-17.

Fast forwarding to the rest of the season, the Lady Irish will face some tough competition. Senior and long time lacrosse player Sarah Coleman says “Our hardest games will be Carmel and Chatard since we lost to them the last two years. Guerin is also very tough, but we already played them last Thursday.” The girls will face off against Chatard on May 2nd, and Carmel just a few days later on May 7th.

Cathedral Girls Lacrosse Head Coach Mary Ann White speaks very highly of this team. She describes them as being “willing to grow”, “willing to fight” and very “coachable”. White says that the girls are a very strong team when they play fast and together, which is the kind of energy they are hoping for in this upcoming season. Carmel, and Cathedral’s rival, Chatard, are two of the most important games of the year. The Carmel Greyhounds faced off against Sacred Heart on March 2nd. Sacred Heart has been a historically impressive team, which makes Carmel’s 14-6 win over them a big tell of the Greyhounds’ talent. Chatard, as with any sport played between Cathedral and them, will also be a hard-fought game for the Lady Irish.

Looking into some skilled players on the Cathedral Girls Lacrosse team, it is no doubt that they have extreme talent. Layna Fitzgerald, a senior at Cathedral, is definitely a team leader and important player. She is currently committed to Smith College to play lacrosse.

Chloe Cox is also a great player for the Lady Irish. With winning an Honorable Mention All-State Award for her junior year, she is definitely going to have a successful senior season. Coach White is a big reason for the development, chemistry, and hardworking mindset of these players. As she said, “Even when they didn’t play great games, it wasn’t because there was no effort.”