On May 14, the Bronxville girls lacrosse team celebrated its senior night in impressive fashion, as the Broncos honored the team’s seven veteran leaders before posting a decisive 23-11 victory over a solid Pleasantville team. Bronxville’s start to the 2021 season has been auspicious, as a 7-0 record might indicate, but the team is sure to be tested over the next week as it prepares to take on a number of Section I’s top teams.

Although the final score might indicate that Friday’s contest was a one-sided affair, the Panthers (4-1) managed to stick with the explosive Broncos for more than 25 minutes. In fact, seven minutes into the second half, Bronxville was clinging to a slight 13-10 edge before orchestrating a ferocious rally that was ultimately able to put the game out of reach.

According to Bronxville head coach Sharon Robinson, Pleasantville’s tenacity on draws and ground balls helped them stick with the Broncos for much of the game. 

“I have to give Pleasantville credit, they played really well today,” she said. “Offensively, I thought we were pretty comfortable in weaving through them, but we just needed to get possession.”

But once the Broncos were able to settle into a second-half rhythm the difference between the two teams was more apparent, as they were able to outscore the visitors 10-1 over the last 17 minutes of regulation. Victoria Ruffo—who, along with Megan Krestinski, notched five goals for the Broncos—found the net four times in a strong second half. 

“[Victoria] had an awesome season for us, she’s playing really well, really hard and finishing strong,” Robinson said. “I would expect her to continue to do so.”

Ruffo’s play is especially important for the Broncos over the next few weeks, as she—along with other Bronxville starters—will be tasked with replacing the offensive output of senior standout Alex Doukas who suffered a season-ending injury in a May 6 game against John Jay. 

“Alex is a huge loss, emotionally she’s just a great core person out there, and she’s obviously an incredible attacker for us, so it’s a two pronged loss,” Robinson said. “But it’s an opportunity for other people to step up and we definitely emphasize our team offense.”

Although Bronxville has had a stellar 2021 thus far, they will face a steep increase in competition this week as they prepare for back-to-back games against Rye and Mamaroneck, after press time. They will close out the regular season campaign with a May 24 game against Fox Lane.