Rancho Santa Margarita, CA — Mater Dei Junior Varsity Girls' Lacrosse began with an early 4-0 lead against the Santa Margarita Eagles on Wednesday night. The five Monarch goal scorers -- Clare O'Connell, Jenna Egan, Claire Menzia, Juliette Hill and Mackenzie Cowles -- each scored at least twice to defeat the Eagles 11-4 on the road. With midfielders Hill and Cowles alternating at center position, the Monarchs dominated draw control by winning nine out of 15 draws in the game. Within the first eleven minutes of play, Mater Dei scored four goals straight as a result of relentless performance on the draw. O'Connell opened the scoring with an unassisted goal. Egan, making good use of her first start of the season, scored the next two goals with unassisted crease rolls. To top off the 4-0 run, game MVP and defender Tatiana Andry caused a turnover and won a ground ball to earn possession for Menzia to score. Although Mater Dei controlled the next draw, a turnover delivered possession to the Eagles who subsequently scored with 11:20 left in the first half. Hill answered back with another draw control and swift goal 20 seconds later. It seemed that Santa Margarita would not back down without a fight when they battled to win the following draw and score again. With nearly nine minutes left in the first half, the score was 5-2 in favor of Mater Dei. But the Eagles were in the range of chipping away at that lead. By taking initiative out of a set offensive play, Menzia scored her second goal with under six minutes to play. Santa Margarita defiantly scored the last goal of the half, bringing the score to 6-3 by halftime. Coach Clayton and Coach Mendoza addressed several game highlights and improvements at halftime. The Monarchs proved strong at the draw but risked losing possession with some offensive mistakes. Defense and midfield were set to put more focus on ground balls and successful clearing from the goalie. Selflessness was a bright note, apparent by the variety of goal scorers in the game so far. The Monarchs translated coaching into taking care of business in the second half, holding the Eagles to only two goals and stretching the Mater Dei lead with five more. Andry, Hill and defender Valerie Kramer came up with crucial ground balls on defense to feed offensive possession multiple times. Their presence was game-changing in the first five minutes of the second half. Even when Santa Margarita managed to gain control of the ball off the draw or missed Monarch shots, defense would not allow a goal against them. Mackenzie Cowles made a drive-and-dodge to goal at 19:16 to score first in the second half. With the score at 8-3, the Eagles desperately needed the next goal to at cut the Mater Dei lead by at least half. They had several chances, but goalie Kaitlyn Nguyen made a flurry of three saves against them. In a matter of time, Kramer soon snagged a ground ball to send possession to Monarch offense. Defense and tenacious recovery had held the Eagles scoreless for nearly ten minutes before the next goal. Juliette Hill netted her second goal of the game with nine minutes left to play, bringing the score to 9-3. Although Santa Margarita managed to make one more goal, the Monarchs dominated the last seven minutes of the game with two more goals by O'Connell and Hill, the latter achieving a well-deserved hat-trick. The final score was 11-4, Mater Dei. The Monarchs swing this victory spirit into their next game against Corona Del Mar at home, tomorrow.