The Montclair High School girls lacrosse team finally celebrated in a contest against Montclair Kimberley. It took a little longer than anyone expected. The Mounties and Cougars gave the spectators at Montclair Girls Lacrosse Day on Saturday plenty of extra playing time at Woodman Field in the Battle of Montclair.
It took almost five overtimes until Montclair junior Olivia Nicoll got a shot off past Montclair Kimberley senior goalie Orly Sedransk with only 35 seconds left in the fifth overtime. Both teams went more than 20 minutes without scoring a goal. Sedransk and Montclair sophomore Sefina Morrison kept both attacks off the scoreboard.
Nicoll’s fifth-overtime goal handed the Mounties the 9-8 victory over the Cougars in the regular season contest. Nicoll and Montclair Kimberley sophomore Shea Murphy had four goals each to lead their respective teams. Montclair raised its record to 6-4, while Montclair Kimberley lost its first match of the season and dropped to 8-1. For the Cougars they tasted defeat for the first time since May 19, 2023. MKA won its last six games last season, including the Non-Public B state title.
After the game, an exhausted Nicoll said that having to go five overtime made the long-awaited victory over their rival much sweeter. “I just thought it made it an even better win that it took so long,” said the Mounties junior.
The irony in the consequential set play was that both Nicoll and Sedransk will be teammates in college by the spring of 2026. Sedransk will play for the University of Pennsylvania next spring. Nicoll will be heading to Philadelphia to play in two more springs.
Nicoll was not wearing her usual number 2, which had a blood stain from the fourth overtime. She needed a new jersey, number 24, which is worn by senior Hannah Saraisky’s sophomore sister, Lucy Saraisky. But that did not impede the Mounties junior top scorer. She fired the shot off the set piece by his future teammate and washed away 11 years of falling in the intercity rivalry.
Along with Nicoll scoring her fourth goal of the match, two other Mounties, Hannah Saraisky and sophomore Sefina Morrison, were pivotal in the extra periods. Hannah Saraisky lost to Montclair Kimberley sophomore Shea Murphy early in the game at the faceoff circle. But the senior got better as the game wore on. She won four of the five faceoffs in overtime. Each time the Mounties got the faceoff, they were able to set up a shot and patiently drain the three-minute overtimes.
Hannah Saraisky said as the contest continued that she knew of the importance of each faceoff. “As the momentum of the game picked up, I got more excited and better,” said the senior Saraisky. “I check to see who is in the circle with me and who the opponent has in the circle to be aware of the opponents and the placement. And I tell my teammates where I am going to place it.”
Most recently, Montclair lost to Montclair Kimberley, 8-4, in what was the last game for the Mounties that season. Hannah Saraisky remembers it well. “It was the last game of that season, and it was a tough loss,” said Hannah. “We really wanted to beat them. I was really ready for this game.”
Nicoll and Hannah Saraisky gave kudos to the new starting goalie this season. Morrison would show off her potential as she made the game’s save when she stopped a shot by Montclair Kimberley’s top goal scorer, senior Aeryn Curren, who had 27 goals coming into the match. “That was the game right there, and she just made a great save,” said Nicoll. “She does not get the credit that she deserves.”
Morrison has gone through a test by fire this season. She has been a goalie against some of the top teams in New Jersey, including Morristown, Oak Knoll and Kent Place. Montclair Kimberley could be put in the class. “She is just amazing and has faced the top players in the state, and she has stepped up so well,” said Hannah.
Montclair Kimberley experienced against Montclair what has been their weakness to start the season: a slow start. The Cougars were behind most of the contest. So were the Mounties. But they took a 6-2 lead in the second quarter after a goal from freshman Keira Griswold with less than six minutes left.
But Montclair Kimberley would not let Montclair run away with the Battle of Montclair. She scored three of the next four goals in the second half as the Cougars sliced the Mounties’ lead to 7-6. Shea was the impetus for the comeback. All of her goals were in the second half, including the score in the fourth quarter that tied the match at eight and sent it into extra time.
It only seemed appropriate that the game would finish with a one-goal difference. Three of Montclair Kimberley’s five-game winning streak in the rivalry had a difference of one goal. The last time the Mounties defeated the Cougars was April 30, 2013, when Montclair won at Montclair Kimberley, 16-8.
Ultimately, the Mounties had the upper hand in the regular season contest. However, an even more important battle between the two schools might come in the upcoming Essex County Tournament. If the two squads find themselves facing off against each other in the county tournament, it would be the first battle in the county tournament in 2019, where Montclair Kimberley won 7-6 in the semifinals.
Schedule
Montclair High School Girls Lacrosse Schedule
(Games at 4 p.m. unless noted)
- May 3 at Verona
- May 10 Caldwell
- May 11 at Westwood, 1 p.m.
- May 14 at Summit, 4:30 p.m.
- May 16 at Westfield, 4:30 p.m.
Montclair Kimberley Girls Lacrosse Schedule
(Matches at 4 p.m. unless noted)
- April 30 Millburn
- May 1 at New Providence
- May 13 at Columbia, 4:15 p.m.
- May 15 at Caldwell
- May 18 Northern Highlands, 11 a.m.
- May 21 Sparta