Concord-Carlisle girls’ lacrosse earns a shot to defend its title with a Division 1 semifinal win over Chelmsford

WESTON — As the final seconds disappeared Sunday night, Concord-Carlisle senior Sarah Fortier dropped the ball to the ground, hoisted her stick in the air, and danced in the pouring rain with her teammates.

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With star Scarlett Mirak sidelined late in the third quarter, the defending Division 1 champion Patriots leaned on their depth, poise, and mental fortitude to find a way past Chelmsford, 6-5, in a semifinal at Weston High.

“That was just so insane,” Fortier said. “The mental power that our team had to do that is unlike any other.”

Mirak led the way with two goals, and Fortier, Lindsay Cain, Hannah Feloney and Bridget Fivek added one apiece for the No. 3 Patriots (19-3).

Catherine Craig carried the No. 2 Lions (17-5) with three goals, the last with 1:24 remaining before the Patriots ran out the clock.

“It took all of them,” said Concord-Carlisle coach Erin Cash. “It took every single one of them. It was a really physical game, and they relied on one another’s strength out there.”

Chelmsford took an early 3-0 lead before Mirak and Cain orchestrated a comeback. Feloney made it 5-3 at halftime, then Chelmsford goalie Eloise Sosnowski took over and gave her team a chance.

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When Mirak went down, the Patriots — who have just two seniors on the roster — displayed their championship DNA.

“My message to her was, ‘We’re going to push for you. Don’t worry about it. We practice for situations like this,’ ” Fortier said. “My message to the rest of the team was the weight that Scarlett pulls, we have to divide to the other 10 people.”

It started pouring right before the fourth quarter began, at which point an already-intense matchup morphed into a chaotic game of keepaway.

The Lions, who have made five semifinals in 10 years but have yet to make the title game, simply ran out of time.

“It’s pretty incredible,” said Chelmsford coach Ashley Rokas. “I feel like we get left out of being one of the top teams. We’re the underdog, always. We have to keep working. We want to make it to that next level.”

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