Climbing the ranks it takes to win a state championship among the highest of competition is not only difficult but also super tough on the mind. It takes 100% effort, focus and dedication day in and day out. The Guilford girls’ lacrosse team, who has faced many highs and lows, understands that mentality very well as they found themselves hoisting their third consecutive state championship trophy in 2023.

In a season that saw the Grizzlies fall short of a title in the SCC Tournament after taking a 14-7 defeat in the final game vs. Cheshire, the girls didn’t back down from their goal and put their full focus into claiming that coveted state championship hardware, a feat that they accomplished on June 11 at Sacred Heart University when they defeated the East Lyme Vikings by a score of 11-4.

Head Coach Wendy Epke knows that winning a state title comes with sacrifices, and she commended the senior class for being willing to make them for their squad.

“To get to the championship in any season takes a ton of work and dedication on the players’ parts,” said Epke. “The seniors are tasked with having to give up some of the fun at the end of school activities too because there’s always a conflict. So, it’s been great that we had the senior group pushing through to the end of the season.”

Senior captain MJ Santa Barbara, who has won a championship in the last three seasons she’s played, acknowledged that what she was able to accomplish with her senior teammates is something truly special.

“It was such a surreal moment,” said Santa Barbara. “The stage doesn’t get any bigger than a state championship and that’s just so exciting. The feeling never gets old and I would do anything to relive those three special days over and over again. It felt amazing to all of the seniors including myself to win a state championship every year we’ve played lacrosse, especially our final year, going out with a bang.”

The Grizzlies (16-7) entered the Class M State Tournament as the 3rd-seeded team. They had a 10-6 regular season and picked up wins in the SCC Tournament over Foran (14-3) and Daniel Hand (15-4) prior to the loss to Cheshire.

In the Class M State Tournament, Guilford cruised past 14th-seeded Waterford in the first round and No. 11 Branford in the quarterfinals, defeating both opponents 15-4. In the semifinals on June 9, they won at ease vs. No. 7 Brookfield with a 14-3 score.

The East Lyme Vikings held the top seed in the tournament and had defeated Guilford on April 19 by a close score of 10-9. Hoping to avenge their loss from earlier in the season, the Grizzlies did it on the biggest stage in an 11-4 final on June 11.

The team was led by Santa Barbara and junior Payton Root, who both scored five times to each outscore the Vikings’ total. Freshman Kadence Epke had two assists and a goal and junior Maya Stoddard recorded 10 saves in net in the win.

Guilford came out with the hot shot, scoring the first five goals of the game. They enjoyed a 6-1 lead at halftime. East Lyme then got back into the game, scoring the next two goals and cutting the Grizzlies lead to three. That’s when Guilford closed the contest on a 5-1 run, capping off another dominant playoff run in which they outscored their four opponents 55-15.

Defeating East Lyme was extra special for the team with them being the top seed, territory that is all too familiar for Guilford. The Grizzlies knew they would eventually see a rematch with the Vikings and that beating them would take more effort and focus than in previous matchups.

“Beating East Lyme was definitely very special because they are a good team who fought hard to beat us the first time,” said Root. “We knew going into the game that we would have to work hard for every play, limit our mistakes, have defense, shut down any opportunities for them to score and we needed to put the ball in the net to come out on top.”

Santa Barbara echoed her teammate’s sentiment, knowing all too well that being underdogs means more intensity on the field.

“It definitely is always a great feeling to knock off the No. 1 seed because we are so used to that being us, but this season, we knew we had to work 2x as hard as years past to get back to the top.”

While Epke said that she doesn’t know which championship was her favorite, Santa Barbara enjoyed this title the most of the three because of the underdog story and proving that Guilford was still the team to beat in Class M.

“The third title was by far my favorite because of the underdog story behind it,” said Santa Barbara. “The months leading up to and during the season many people and several teams thought this was going to be their year to take down Guilford because a few of our star players had left. The 2022 season was “believe it” and the 2023 season was “prove it”. We proved it.”

Both Santa-Barbara and Root shined in the biggest game of the year, but couldn’t have done it without their teammates, who remained focused and set them up for success.

“Every player wants to have a good game every time they step on the field,” said Root. “Scoring those five goals feels great, but I wouldn’t have been able to do it without my teammates always being there for me and knowing they trust me to score.”

For Santa Barbara, lacrosse isn’t as much about the accolades, but rather the team aspect of working together to reach a common goal.

“In my eyes, lacrosse has never been a game about stats or how many goals I score,” said Santa Barbara. “I credit my success to my faith and to every girl that stood on that field on Sunday. I owe it all to them.”

While Guilford won the state title, it didn’t come without some struggles and adversity along the way. After starting the season 5-0, the Grizzlies hit a mid-season slump from April 19 to May 9, where they lost four out of six games falling to 8-5.

Epke said that the team had to cut back on turnovers and make more plays out of their offensive positions, to which they made the successful adjustment later in the season.

“I think they had to learn throughout the season to reduce turnovers and cherish the offensive possessions we get in a game and make the most of them,” said Epke.

Guilford will graduate eight seniors from this past championship team as they look to add their fourth-straight title in lacrosse next season to the program’s resume. Some key returnees are Root, midfielders Téa Gambardella and Ciara Davenport, defender Isabella Blanco and goalie Stoddard.

“I will continue to work hard for my teammates, myself but especially for the name on the front of my jersey,” said Root. “I think we could be a top seed again, but like every other team, we still have work to focus on. I definitely want another title, my teammates want another one and I know the incoming freshmen want one too.”

The 2023 championship varsity roster consisted of senior captains Ella Clarke, Scout Climie, Kat Baseggio and Santa Barbara; seniors Kailyn Scott, Ava Lepro, Emerson Forselius and Kayla Nophsker; juniors Blanco, Jordan Fitzgerald, Root, Addison Widlitz, Tania Evans, Paige Balletto and Stoddard; sophomore Gambardella; and freshmen Davenport and Epke.

To view more photos of Guilford’s victory in the Class M championship, visit our gallery from the contest at: https://www.zip06.com/photo-galleries/20230620/guilford-girls-lax-class-m-championship/