Oakton Girls Lacrosse Aims to Improve Record

With the core of the roster returning as seniors, the Oakton High girls lacrosse team has high hopes of reaching deep into the postseason a year after .

The 2012 regular season kicked off Thursday with a 22-3 win over Loudoun County, then followed with a 20-8 victory over Lake Braddock in their home-opener Friday.

Jackie Rupp led the Cougars with a game-high five goals. Claire Stikeleather added four goals and Alex Revel added three.

The Cougars are oozing with experience with 12 seniors, five of whom played varsity as freshmen and three — Revel (James Madison University), Carly Palmucci (University of Connecticut) and Rupp (University of Florida) — who will be playing Division I lacrosse next year.

"We have a very seasoned team. A lot of them have been through good games and bad games, good seasons and not-so-good seasons," Coach Jean Counts said.

Counts, in her 15th year as coach, expects a strong season for the Cougars and aims improve their regular season record from last year's 14-5.

"We had way too many losses last year for a team that finished second in the state," Counts said.

To combat the inconsistency, they have implemented a few new tactics that stem from the influence of Bob Rupp, a new assistant on the coaching staff. He has helped them implement some aspects of men's lacrosse into their game.

With a few new tricks up their sleeves, along with a deep bench, Counts feels confident the team can be more consistent this year.

"If one girl isn't having a good day, we have people who can pick up where she left off. They can share the burden," Counts said.

The Cougars have two more games in March before starting Concorde District play April 13. For their next matchup, they'll travel to Langley High on March 22.

"I just expect them to work hard every day. I want them to play together and learn to mesh," Counts said. "We want to mesh early and we want to keep on finding improvements with each day to learn and get better."