Girls Lacrosse: Oakton Wins Concorde District Title

After a 25-minute delayed start and a tight game with rival Chantilly, the Oakton girls lacrosse team won 16-14 to earn the Concorde District championship title.

Chantilly and Oakton met for the second time this season, this time on Chantilly's home turf. In their last matchup, Oakton lost by two goals — one of two district losses for the Cougars.

Within seconds of the start, junior Carly Palmucci scored the first goal of the game for Oakton. Chantilly’s Kacey Norwood would answer this goal shortly afterward, but Oakton would pull into the lead for the remainder of the first half. At halftime, the score stood at 12-9.

During a more aggressive and physical second half, Chantilly tied the game at 12-12 with a goal by Shannon Strittmater. Oakton answered that goal quickly and a short volley back and forth of the lead took place with Oakton ultimately on top with a 16-14 final score.

Jean Counts, Oakton's head coach, went into the championship confident. She focused on the basics and team skills instead of focusing on the opponent during the practices leading up the game. Six girls lacrosse players from Oakton have been named to the All-District team: Jackie Rupp, Carly Palmucci, Alex Revel and Ally Turk on first team, and Rachel Kuykendall and Kelsey Weathers on second team. Maddy Ray and Amanda Bailey were honorable mentions.

Oakton will play Falls Church at Oakton in the first round of the regionals tournament. The game starts at 7 p.m.