Sussex Academy storms back against Milford to run the clock

A fired-up Milford girls’ lacrosse team took an early first-quarter 4-2 lead over Sussex Academy April 30, before the Seahawks regrouped and eventually lit the field on fire in their 22-8 win.

“They definitely came out strong, and I think we knew that coming into the game, but we learned how to adjust to their style and offense,” Rilyn Lehman said.

Trailing 5-4 to start the second quarter, Sussex Academy took over the lead before conceding another goal. They then rattled off four straight goals to end the first half with an 11-6 lead.

“We knew it was going to be a battle that we'd have to fight, and we had to fight to come up on to,” coach Taylor Gibbs said. “Our conditioning really came in handy today.”

The offense took a while to get going, but when it was up to full speed, the goals were coming fast, literally.

“It's been a while since we've had a well-played game that our entire team came together for,” Emiley Bisaha said. “This was definitely one of those games once we got going.”

Bisaha led the team with seven goals, two coming in the third quarter, as the Seahawks expanded to an 18-7 lead and began the fourth with a running clock. The captain said she had been working on being more accurate. Junior Shea Danahy finished second on the team with five goals, while sophomore June Hale had a hat trick. Junior Lily Bisaha struck twice in her new role on offense, and Liz Layton added a pair. Mady Lehman, Reilly Mobilia and Ellie Merrick each tallied a goal.

Sharing is not only caring for the girls, but also the Seahawks’ philosophy on offense.

“We love to make assists; we love to pass the ball around first before looking for drives,” Danahy said. “Of course, we like to make the drive first and then look around, but we love to do the cuts, drives and feeds.”

As the seconds ran off without respite, the defense locked up its eighth game of 2025 that ended with their opponent in single digits.

“If we have high-level communication, then we're able to perform, succeed and thrive on the defensive end,” Lehman said.

Sweat equity earned during those practices where the girls barely touch a stick are starting to show.

“Going into the conditioning every day, they’re definitely not looking forward to it, but then moments like this, I know that they definitely don't take those opportunities for granted,” Gibbs said. “They really appreciate being able to see that conditioning help us.”