Slow start, fast finish for Polytech

• Polytech's Ali McKay had seven goals and an assist, and Jamie Trabaudo found the net five times
• Polytech also got a lift from freshman goalkeeper Shae Stephan, who came up big on three 8-meter shots in the first half.

MIDDLETOWN – Polytech girls lacrosse coach Lynn Richardson knew her Panthers would be fine after they gave up a couple of early goals Thursday night.

But her players weren't so sure.

"We kind of panicked," Jamie Trabaudo said. "Coach Richardson tells us to never panic. But it was a little scary."

There was no need to worry. Ali McKay had seven goals and an assist, and Trabaudo found the net five times as Polytech roared to a 15-7 victory over Middletown at Cavaliers Stadium.

"My team is a little loose sometimes," Richardson said. "I knew they would settle in. They're a pretty athletic bunch, so once they get going, they're OK."

It took the Panthers a little while to get going. The Cavaliers controlled four of the first five draws, and Middletown's Lexi Johnston and Joyce Keller scored to put the home team up 2-0 less than five minutes into the game.

"We were a little slow at first," McKay said. "I think it was a shock that they got a couple of fast breaks on us. But once we got together and settled down, we got to where we were going. We got our basics down again."

McKay led the charge, scoring twice to tie it with 17:41 left in the first half. Then Trabaudo slipped one in from behind, and Colleen O'Brien converted Arlene Maheu's feed to give Polytech a 4-2 lead.

After Emily Saylor scored for Middletown, McKay charged straight in for a goal, then scored again after a poke in the face. Then Trabaudo bounced one in, scored another from a sharp angle and finished the half by stuffing one into the top right corner from behind the net for a 9-4 advantage.

"It's good to play teams that play really good defense, and they were really tight on us. Their slides were really good," Trabaudo said. "Sneaking in from behind is pretty easy if you have good feeds. It just worked with them, because of the style of defense they played."

The Panthers (2-0) scored the first five goals of the second half, the highlight coming when McKay snapped a crossing pass to Katie Richardson at the last instant for an easy score.

"Ali McKay is a workhorse," Richardson said. "She's just a great kid who plays hard all the time. Her and Jamie run the midfield with Rachel [Slater], and those three can run forever. They kind of took control there in the midfield."

Polytech also got a lift from freshman goalkeeper Shae Stephan, who came up big on three 8-meter shots in the first half.

"You want to get big, so you go as close to the outside of the crease as possible," Stephan said of her strategy. "And then you just try to go where the ball goes."

Stephan finished with six saves.

"She did a great job on 8-meter shots, and she really settled in in the second half," Richardson said.

Middletown (0-2) got two goals and an assist from Saylor, and two goals from Johnston.

Contact Brad Myers at bmyers@delawareonline.com. Follow on Twitter: @BradMyersTNJ