For Wausau Pilot & Review
WAUNAKEE – The Wausau Wolfpack high school girls lacrosse team played their first games of the 2023 season on Saturday in Waunakee.
Stifling defense and precise passing by both Waunakee and Verona led to a pair of losses for the Wolfpack. Waunakee won 18-4 in the first contest and Verona won 19-1 in the second game.
Waunakee jumped out to a quick five-goal lead in the first seven minutes of the game before the Wolfpack’s Emma Ringle scored the team’s first goal of the season on a penalty shot.
Freshman attacker Maria Imhoff added a breakaway goal for the Wolfpack in the final minutes of the half, making the halftime score of 10-2 in favor of Waunakee. Waunakee was led by Tori Bialkowski and Samantha Gehling with four goals each.
The Wolfpack added second-half goals by Imhoff and on a penalty shot by senior attacker Mia Otten, but Waunakee continued to pull away, winning 18-4. The game was a very physical matchup with several yellow cards issued to both teams for rough play.
The second game also started with a scoring barrage by the Wolfpack’s opponent. Verona jumped out to a 9-0 lead in the first 12 minutes of the game before junior attacker Brooke Schaefer scored for the Wolfpack. Verona continued to build upon their lead in the second half, winning 19-1. Georgia Pacetti and Hannah Jabas scored four goals for the Wildcats in the game.
Despite the nonconference losses, the Wolfpack players felt they took something away from the experience of playing a pair of teams who won games in last year’s state tournament.
“We feel like we fought hard in the games,” said Otten. “It was a learning experience for us. We have to get better at picking up the loose ground balls and improve our passing.”
The Wolfpack’s next game will be played at Oregon at 6 p.m. on Wednesday in another nonconference contest. The team participates in the Bay Valley Conference which stretches the state from Hudson to Bay Port.
For game updates, photos and more, follow the team on Facebook at CWWolfpackgirlsLAX.
The team is supported at the Pack Leader level by Advantage Group, Dr. Thiel with the Bone and Joint Clinic, Surgical Associates, Turf MDs and WW Self Storage, at the Howler level by Kwik Trip and Wausau Oral Surgery, and at the Lone Wolf level by Orthopaedic Associates of Wausau, Polito’s Pizza and WoodTrust Bank.
