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The Norwalk High School girls lacrosse team had a tall task to open its 2011 season, taking on defending FCIAC champion Wilton. Though the Warriors ended up handing Norwalk a 14-2 defeat, Bears head coach Al Morganthaler was optimistic.
"We had our shots. We had 15 shots on net, but we didn't capitalize on it," Morganthaler said. "In the past they've just crushed us, but I was happy with a lot of things we did today. We were in the game for a while."
After a four-goal flurry by Wilton early in the game, Norwalk kept the Warriors off the scoreboard for more than 10 minutes. Christine Mace got the Bears on the board with just more than 10 minutes to play. That goal seemed to reawaken Wilton, which then scored four more goals before the halftime horn sounded.
What killed Norwalk, Morganthaler said, was its inability to win face-offs. Wilton's Casey Pearsall dominated on that front, winning an impressive 10 draws.
Norwalk goalkeeper Megan Carney put up an admirable effort in net for the Bears, coming up with 22 saves. Wilton got off a whopping 40 shots.
Efthimia Kutrubis netted Norwalk's second and final goal of the game with seven minutes to play.
"It's a hard game to start with, but I'm very positive," Morganthaler said. "We have a lot of speed on this team, and we're making opportunities on offense. Megan was awesome in net and she kept us in the game. That's positive to build on."
Norwalk will try to bounce back Saturday when it travels to Staples High School for a 2 p.m. game.
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