By Michael Letendre 

BRISTOL – It took just a little timeout by the Bristol Eastern girls lacrosse team to right the ship in its crosstown battle against St. Paul Catholic on Monday afternoon. 

The Lancers were down 10-4 with seven minutes remaining in the first half when the team’s leading scorer, Emma Stavens, called for a quick break in the action. 

And according to Eastern coach Kayla Policarpio, that timeout helped Stavens rally the troops.  

After timeout came and went, the Lancers went on a roll to square the non-conference bout away. 

Trailing by six, the Kingstreeters outscored the Falcons 10-2 as Eastern zipped up an impressive 14-12 victory from McPhee Field on the campus of St. Paul Catholic High School. 

The win (4-2 overall) was the Lancers’ fourth straight triumph while the Falcons fell to 2-1. 

“The Lancers fell behind early in the game to a formidable Falcon offense,” said Policarpio. “After the half, the Lancers tied up the game and eventually put two on net to pull ahead.” 

St. Paul Catholic’s Emily Walker is a scoring machine, collecting a game-high eight goals while teammate Abbey Stanford added three to pace the attack. 

But once the Eastern defense got into gear, helped by that quick break in the action, the offense sprang to life. 

Eastern’s Jayna Hatcher was her usual self on defense and after that offensive onslaught by the Falcons, keeper Avery Ellis stopped numerous second half shots – allowing just two goals over the final 31 minutes of play. 

Stavens led the offensive charge with four goals and a couple of assists while Vanessa Drury tallied three goals. 

Kenzie Aparo and Sarah Hartley splashed in two goals apiece while Taigan Parent also flipped in a shot to pace the attack. 

It was another tremendous victory for the locals as the Eastern program hasn’t lost since falling to Lewis Mills (11-7) back on April 6. 

“It was a fierce game,” said Policarpio of the win over St. Paul Catholic. “We hope to see this winning streak continue into our game on Friday against Wethersfield.” 

The Wethersfield contest commences at 5 p.m. from Cottone Field and then next Tuesday, it’s a big one for Eastern. 

It’s another city series bout as the Lancers tangle against Bristol Central from Alumni Field at 7 p.m., the first of two showdowns between the schools this year. 

Bristol Eastern Girls Lacrosse – Non-conference Action 

BRISTOL EASTERN 14, ST. PAUL CATHOLIC 12 

from St. Paul Catholic High School 

Scoring – Bristol Eastern 

*Emma Stavens – 4 goals, 2 assists 

*Vanessa Drury – 3 goals, 1 assist 

*Taigan Parent – 1 goal, 1 assist 

*Kenzie Aparo – 2 goals, 1 assist 

*Sarah Hartley – 2 goals 

Scoring – St. Paul Catholic 

*Emily Walker – 8 goals 

*Abbey Stanford – 3 goals  

*Jalelzex Arroyo – 1 

Saves: Samantha Sein (St. Paul Catholic), 16. 

Records: Bristol Eastern 4-2 overall; St. Paul Catholic 2-1.