Pascack Hills wins American North for program’s first division title by Sean Farrell of The Record
MONTVALE – Caitlin Ernest will keep wearing her white lacrosse uniform with pride.
It wasn’t always this way at Pascack Hills.
She came to the school when the team was in disarray.
She will leave as a champion.
Ernest led the Cowgirls to their first division title in program history with a 9-5 win over Ramsey on Friday.
The senior scored a hat trick as Pascack Hills stayed undefeated in American North play.
The same team that won just a few games during its first few years is now a powerhouse at 16-1.
And the program’s all-time leader in goals and points couldn’t be happier.
“It’s just incredible to take the program to this level for all of us,” Ernest said. “All the seniors came in this year and said that this was our year. This is our time to show what we have and leave something special.”
Pascack Hills is having the type of season most wouldn’t have thought possible not too long ago.
The ninth-ranked Cowgirls had a total of one win in its first two years.
Scoring a few goals was the hope back then. Just being able to pass and catch was enough to earn playing time.
“The fact that we just won a league championship just shows how far we’ve come,” said Allie Ernest, Caitlin’s twin sister.
“When we were walking around the hall as freshmen, we didn’t wear the jersey. It was almost an embarrassment to play girls lacrosse. Today we wore these to school. [My dad] brought this to where we are so proud to play lacrosse. I love saying I’m part of this team.”
Coach Scott Ernest, now in his fifth year, has led Pascack Hills to the best season in school history.
The Cowgirls took a step forward this spring after three years around .500.
They entered Friday with an offense and defense that ranked in the top 10 in the state in goals per game.
The scoring in the latest win came from the usual sources.
Caitlin and Allie Ernest combined for seven goals, while Phoebe Shields chipped in another two.
“I’m the luckiest coach in the world,” Scott Ernest said. “This whole thing came together in front of me and I had very little to do with it. They just put it upon themselves to learn the game and we grew together. That’s the beauty of it. I grew with them. It’s not like I taught them and they grew. We all grew.”
Clinching the title didn’t come easy for Pascack Hills.
An early goal was called off after a stick check.
The referees gave a warning to both teams at halftime on a day when three Rams left the field with injuries.
Then Ramsey scored four of the game’s last five goals to add intrigue to a once one-sided matchup.
“It was crazy,” Caitlin Ernest said. “That’s the only word. We knew this was going to be really tough.”
The stingy Pascack Hills defense held strong late in the game to close out the win.
The Cowgirls didn’t allow a goal in the final 4:38 of play.
Amanda O’Brien came up with a key stop on a free position with about two minutes left.
The senior goalie who only started playing lacrosse this year gave another brilliant performance with 10 saves.
And Pascack Hills, at last, became a champion.
“There’s so much pride,” senior defender Erica Butler said. “All the other sports teams are in shock when we come in and say we won again.”
“We couldn’t ask for anything better,” Caitlin Ernest said. “I love putting on this jersey. I love playing for my school.”