LYNN — More history was made on Tremont Street this past spring as the St. Mary’s girls lacrosse team had its best season in program history, finishing the year with a 16-3 record and reaching the Round of 8 in Division 3.

First-year head coach Jessica Gambale led the Spartans to the Catholic Central League (CCL) title while earning the No. 6 seed in the postseason.

“I’m really happy with what we were able to accomplish this season. The girls put in the work right from the start of preseason. The girls always showed up 15-plus minutes early to every practice and really invested in getting better and taking feedback,” Gambale said. “We set some goals at the beginning of the season, and as a team we’d check in throughout the season to make sure we were accomplishing our goals. Some big goals were communication and better defense, which I think we definitely improved upon this season.”

When asked what made this team dominant this past spring, Gambale spoke about the chemistry the team built over the years and through other sports.

“We had two years with this group because we only lost two seniors last year, so a lot of chemistry was already built. We have a big group of upperclassmen, juniors and seniors. They played together, with the majority of them playing field hockey and hockey together, so when they came into lacrosse they were excited and already had that chemistry built,” Gambale said. “They all had great seasons in their other sports, so we wanted to keep the energy up. I told them I believed we could win the CCL, which we did, and make a deep tournament push. I just wanted them to know that someone believed in them, which I think is what they needed.”

St. Mary’s won its first eight games in a row and won five of those games by double digits.

“The first couple of games of the season, we came out so hot and won most of them by double digits. Coach Sydney Brennan and I kept looking at each other and asking, ‘Is this really happening?’ Everything was working. Everything we were implementing, the players were executing on the field,” Gambale said. “We had big wins against Triton and Watertown, and I think our home game against Archbishop Williams was a big eye-opener of what we were going to be able to do this season. Our most exciting win was against Bishop Fenwick because, until then, we hadn’t beaten them in many years. To do that together was really special.”

Gambale credited her captains, Ava Nason, Olivia Penney, Tabby Lopes, Alyssa Norden and Cassidy Cheney, for picking the team up whenever adversity hit.

“There were definitely lulls where we had to regroup and rediscuss our goals, but overall the energy stayed high throughout the season,” Gambale said. “We had some great captains who helped keep us grounded. Someone would always step up and make sure we were keeping ourselves accountable to make sure we reached our goals.”

Nason scored 336 goals from her freshman year through her senior year and was named the CCL MVP.

“It was really fun getting to coach Ava. She definitely taught me things, and I think we had a really great relationship. Being such a great player with such a high IQ, she would still trust my opinion, listen to me and hear me out as well,” Gambale said. “She played unreal and played pretty much every minute of every game. I had never coached someone that skilled before in my life, so I will definitely not be forgetting her anytime soon.”

In addition to Nason, Shaye Denning, Keira Twomey, Penney and Norden all received CCL All-Star honors.

Now, Gambale wants to continue to build off the success and have more girls wanting to come to St. Mary’s to play lacrosse.

“Historically, if you’re a good basketball player or hockey player, you go to St. Mary’s, and no one before was necessarily picking St. Mary’s for its elite lacrosse program. I think we helped put the school on the map this year for girls lacrosse, and I’m hoping people take note of our record, our progress, our improvement and want to be part of it,” Gambale said. “I hope more people want to join the Spartan family and want to be part of the lacrosse team.”