CCS lacrosse finals: Late charge falls a goal short for Stevenson

ATHERTON — The emphasis in the team’s final huddle was about the development of a program in uncharted waters, playing for its first section championship.

That didn’t ease the pain of a record-breaking girls lacrosse season coming up a goal short Saturday in the Central Coast Section Division II title game.

“We tried to emphasize what a special season this has been,” Stevenson coach Jerry Gilbert said. “The program has really evolved in the last three years. This was a pinnacle moment. We tried to give them that perspective.”

Another minute and another milestone moment was insight. Instead, the Pirates ran out of time in a 10-9 loss to top-seed Palo Alto at Menlo-Atherton High.

“We made a valid fourth quarter comeback,” Gilbert said. “We were down by four and rallied to cut it to one. We just couldn’t get the possesion back. We ran out of time.”

Champions of the Gabilan Division, Stevenson set a new school record for wins this spring with 15, capturing the program’s first two ever playoff wins to advance to the finals.

Having outscored their first two opponents 29-16 in the postseason, the Pirates were staring at an 8-4 deficit to open the final 12 minutes before going on a furious run, outscoring Palo Alto 5-2.

“The team we were playing against was taking the air out of the ball,” Gilbert said. “They were holding the ball for long possessions. It sort of shrunk the game for us.”

The tactic limited Stevenson’s possessions and kept high-scoring snipers Brogan Dolata and Sydney Holland from getting into any kind of rhythm.

Dolata and Holland came into the title game having combined for 21 goals and a pair of assists in the Pirates (15-5) two postseason games.

“Palo Alto didn’t want to play our pace,” Gilbert said. “Because of the way the possessions went, we were not able to get them many opportunities.”

While Dolata and Holland both produced a goal, it was Sam Rianhard and Georgia Bonifas leading a fourth quarter charge for the Pirates, enabling them to cut a four-goal deficit to one with a little more than a minute remaining.

Yet, despite having taken the momentum, Stevenson wasn’t able to get another possession as Palo Alto — as it had done throughout the game, held possession to run out the clock.

“We were really griddy,” Gilbert said. “We just couldn’t get the possession back to attempt to tie the game. Palo Alto was a good team.”

Rianhad and Bonifas each finished with three goals, while Dolata, Holland and Charlotte Schipper all recorded one. Zola Ducker finished with nine saves in the cage.

Copyright 2026 Tribune Content Agency. All Rights Reserved.

This story was originally published May 16, 2026 at 2:54 PM.