TOWN AND COUNTRY – Reese Rafferty thought the excitement from her teammates was a bit excessive, especially for a first half goal in a third-place game.
“When I came to the sidelines, my friends were cheering for me, but I didn’t realize why,” Rafferty said.
Rafferty scored four goals, including her 100th of the season, and helped John Burroughs earn a 16-4 victory over MICDS in the Missouri Scholastic Lacrosse Association third-place game Saturday at Missouri Baptist University.
John Burroughs (17-2), the No. 1 seed coming into the MSLA playoffs, ended its season with its best winning percentage since the Bombers went 17-0 in 2013 and won the state title.
Rafferty began the second quarter with a natural hat trick, scoring three consecutive goals in a three-minute span. Her second goal, in which she accepted a pass from behind the net, circled around the goal, split between three defenders and scored, made her the 11th St. Louis-area player since the year 2000 to reach the 100-goal mark in a season.
“I honestly had no idea,” said Rafferty, a Butler University commit. “I went into the game with an open mindset, and I knew I had to get the ball into the back of the net for us to finish third, but I actually didn’t realize it at all.”
Injured teammates Katy Chapman and Jane Dunaway did realize it and cheered fervently from the sideline. Moments later, Chapman and Dunaway mimicked taking off a hat and tossing it onto the field after Rafferty’s third goal.
“I think what really sets us apart as a team is the joy we have playing together. We have so much fun, and that what makes us such a special team,” junior Kate Logsdon said.
Logsdon, a University of Virginia field hockey commit, set the tone early with the first two goals of the game. Despite the disappointment of not reaching the state title game, the Bombers were grateful to have one, final chance to play together as a team and they showed it from the outset.
“Obviously, this isn’t the game we wanted to be playing in. We faced some difficulties this season with injuries and some bad luck, but we knew that two teams get to finish with a win, and we wanted to be one of those teams,” said Logsdon, who led all scorers with six goals.
And the contributions for the Bombers came from a variety of players. Junior goalie Morgan Cade made three outstanding saves in succession, including one on a free position shot from MICDS sophomore Katherine Schott and another on a point-blank attempt from senior Brooke Bernstein to keep MICDS off the scoreboard in the first quarter.
Goals by sophomore Flynn Englesmann and freshman Devon Gable helped Burroughs build a 7-1 lead at halftime. Azin Mofidi, Charlie Desai and Claire Spector added goals for the Bombers in the second half. It was the first goal of the season for Mofidi and the second for Spector.
“We had people in different spots and everyone stepped up,” John Burroughs coach Meghan Digiulio said.
And the defense, led by University of Pennsylvania field hockey commit Sarah Ding, held MICDS to its lowest goal output since a 16-4 loss to Eastern Louisville on March 28, 2019.
“We trusted each other. Our slides were there, and we trusted that our teammates would fill in the next spot,” Ding said.
It was the final game for MICDS coach Kate Haffenreffer, who resigned after eight outstanding seasons to spend more time with family. Haffenreffer’s teams reached the final four each season, winning back-to-back state titles in 2017 and 2018 and again in 2021 and 2022.
Rafferty, a junior, joined an exclusive group of 11 area players that have scored 100 goals in a season – most recently, Kendra Swope of Francis Howell North (102 in 2023). She has a chance to join Annie Spewak of Parkway West (104 in 2012 and 116 in 2014) as the only players to accomplish the feat twice.
And for the Bombers entire squad, the ability to play one more game as a team, no matter the stakes, provided proper closure to their outstanding season.
“We wanted it. We had the grit and the hustle. Every single person on that field played their hardest,” Logsdon said.
She added. “We were lucky to get to play this game.”
For a photo gallery from this game: https://benvessa.smugmug.com/Girls-Lacrosse-2023-24/Girls-Lacrosse-2025/John-Burroughs-vs-MICDS-MSLA-3rd-place-
STL-area players to score 100 goals in a season (since 2000):
Reese Rafferty, John Burroughs (102 in 2024); Kendra Swope, Francis Howell North (102 in 2023); Paige Rawitscher, Clayton (124 in 2022); Reese Bennett, Belleville West (110 in 2021), Mackenzie Torres, Belleville West (104 in 2021); Lauren Ottensmeyer, Parkway West (116 in 2019), Kalylon Buckner, Ladue (116 in 2018), Maria Johnson, Lafayette (113 in 2016), Annie Spewak, Parkway West (116 in 2014), Elena Gresick, Ladue (115 in 2012), Annie Blevins, Summit (114 in 2012), Annie Spewak, Parkway West (104 in 2012).