Forest ready to step in when St. Thomas girls lacrosse needed it

MANCHESTER - Cara Forest would do anything the St. Thomas Aquinas High School girls lacrosse team needed her to do.

Last week, the Saints found out that included putting on goalie gear in the middle of a game and stepping into the crease.

St. Thomas needed someone to do just that in the second half of its 22-11 win over Derryfield on May 6. Starting goalie Reese Foss took a shot off the knee, and while she tried to stay in the game, the sophomore had to come out with about seven minutes left in the third quarter.

With the junior varsity just starting to warm up, and no official backup goalie on the roster, Forest rushed off the field and quickly put on the equipment.

“I’m just here to support the team,” Forest said. “I’m not really tied down to a specific position, so I just thought it would be fun. I didn’t want to give the jayvee (goalie) the pressure.”

Forest played goalie once when she was on the junior varsity, but not since, and while there were a few other teammates who volunteered, the senior insisted on doing it.

“That type of teamwork and sportsmanship, to be able to have somebody just be like ‘I’ll do it,’” St. Thomas co-coach Jen Carroll said. “Like, the team needs somebody, I’m going to step up. It’s awesome to see that. It’s tough, too, to put the jayvee goalie in that position. We had a couple of other girls who volunteered, but Cara was like ‘I got it’ and she did great.”

There wasn't much for Forest to do in the third quarter and early into the fourth, as St. Thomas (7-2) built its lead up to 22-7. But Derryfield managed to get a few opportunities after that, and Forest had to step up to try to make a few saves.

On one save, a shot came in from her left and Forest stuck to goalie stick out and plucked it out of the air.

“I think (my eyes) were open,” she said. “I was kind of just going for it and I guess it worked.”

While Forest felt the desire to help out where the team needed it, what also propelled that decision was the support her and her teammates give to each other on a regular basis.

“We’re a very supportive team,” she said. “We’re all close friends. The energy of our team reflects how we play. I think that we have a couple of really positive girls, we have a good atmosphere, and I think that helps us a lot.”

The Saints have been in the D3 championship game in each of the last three seasons, winning the last two, and that support has been a recurring theme, regardless of who has been on the roster.

“They are a phenomenal group of ladies,” Carroll said. “Even on the sideline, you can hear them cheering. They’re very unselfish, which I think is a great thing to see, especially at this caliber of lacrosse. If the shot’s not there for them, they’re looking for the next person and looking to be that feeder. It’s great to have a that loves each other so much they’re willing to do (anything) for one another. They make our job easy, honestly.”

St. Thomas has faced a little more adversity this season on the field than in years past. After compiling a 34-1 record over the last two seasons - with the one loss coming to D1 Portsmouth - the Saints lost their first division game in almost three years on April 23, falling to Bow in overtime.

The Saints also dropped their next game, against Bishop Guertin, to take back-to-back losses for the first time since the end of the 2022 season.

“We haven’t seen that in a long time,” Carroll said. “But they’re a tough group, so they’re going to battle back and they’ve got their eyes on that third one. We’re going to see more competition. We have some good teams coming down the path. I think it’s good for us to really appreciate the competition that’s there, and it makes us a better team.”