A non-league encounter in girls' lacrosse turned out to be a close and dramatic match last Wednesday, when the Patriots of Germantown Academy visited the Mount St. Joseph Academy Magic.

The score was tied six times, lastly at 8-8 near the end of regulation play. In the middle of a second three-minute overtime stint, the issue was decided when GA sophomore Sienna Paone scored off a feed from senior Sydney Wanner to secure a 9-8 win for the Patriots.

GA, which had lost two matches during a spring break trip to Florida, rose to 1-2 on the season. The Mount, whose break always centers around Easter, had played more games, and was 3-5 after Wednesday's bout.

This spring Germantown Academy has a new head coach, Colleen Dawson, who brings a great deal of experience to the Patriots. A Chester County native who played for the University of Maryland, Dawson went on to become an assistant coach at St. Joseph's University and then spent five seasons as head coach at the College of William & Mary.

Last Wednesday, host Mount St. Joe's opened the scoring in the second minute, as junior Nora Feliciani converted off the rebound of a teammate's shot. Sophomore Harper Henley tied it up for the Patriots with 6:36 remaining in the first quarter, and the scoring pace picked up after that.

The Magic moved back in front with a marker by junior Gabby Clair, then the visitors pulled even again as Wanner (who will go on to play for Georgetown University) freed herself with a roll dodge and scored. The Patriots took their first lead when Henley netted her second goal from near the right edge of the crease.

With just over a minute left in the opening frame Neely Lesovitz, a freshman out of Norwood Fontbonne Academy, tied things up at 3-3 for the hosts. The Patriots would have the last word in the period, though, as freshman Audrey Mennerich made good on a free position with 18 ticks on the clock.

The Magic would pull even again at 4-4, but late in the second quarter and early in the third, two goals by Wanner and one by Paone gave the Patriots their largest lead of the game, at 7-4. Goals by Clair and Lesovitz got Mount St. Joe's back within one point by the end of the third stanza.

With 8:36 remaining in regulation time, MSJ sophomore Anna Saucier leveled the scoreboard at 7-7, and a little over a minute later the Mounties went ahead 8-7 when Lesovitz put in a bounce shot from a free position on the left side of the arc. GA's Wanner attacked from the right to score with 5:16 remaining, tying the game a final time at 8-all.

The Magic mounted repeated attacks near the end of regulation play, but GA senior goalie Sadie Hess turned away two shots and the Magic fired the ball over the crossbar on a free-position opportunity.

Patriots junior Maggie Luviano captured the draw at the start of the first overtime period, then ended up taking a bounce shot that was a little off-target. Later, Magic freshman Anna Geib had a low shot saved by Hess, and GA started upfield on offense. In transition, a Patriot pass was picked off by the Mount's Clair, and the first OT ended with the tally still at 8-8.

After some midfield scrambles at the start of the second extra session, Germantown went up on attack. From the top of the offensive set, Wanner zipped a pass down low as Paone made a cut toward the crease, and the sophomore scored with 1:36 on the clock to give the visitors a 9-8 victory.

Wanner finished with four goals, Henley and Paone had two apiece, and Mennerich scored once. Hess came away with 11 saves. For the Mount, freshman Maeve Shields made six saves in goal. Clair and Lesovitz each deposited three goals, with single goals coming from Feliciani and Saucier.