The girls varsity Lions celebrated senior night with a 5-2 victory over the Burke Bengals Tuesday at CESJDS.

The spirited atmosphere began hours before the game, when the seniors walked into school dressed as princesses with shiny tiaras and black dresses, while underclassmen dressed in simple clothing and white aprons as their servants.

According to senior captain Emily Nadler, in honor of senior night, the underclassmen “pampered” the seniors with brownies, roses and gift bags.

The seniors took the field at game time, but got off to a bit of a slow start.

“We are typically slightly slow starters but we do eventually start passing the ball really well and they do pick up their energy,” girls varsity soccer coach Jay Matula said.

Sophomore Ally Knapp put the first number on the scoreboard, scoring a pair of goals to jumpstart the team. Senior Dani Bernstein mimicked Knapp’s intensity, extending their lead over the Bengals to 3-0.

Looking to combat the Lions’ dominance on the scoreboard, the Bengals followed up with a goal of their own, concluding the half with a score of 3-1.

Determined to execute a fiercer offensive strategy after a slow start to the first half, freshman Abby Alter scored back-to-back goals five minutes into the second half, extending the Lions’ lead to 5 – 1 over the Bengals.

The Bengals added one last goal, with 15 minutes left in the game, but that was all they could muster.

With two more games left in the season, including one against Washington Waldorf on Monday, Oct. 9, Matula hopes to occupy the third seed in the playoff conference tournament.

“We need to keep up our momentum and play the way we played today and hopefully we’ll get a win,” Nadler said.