Eastside Catholic freshman Maddie Banks scored a last-minute goal to forge a 9-9 tie with Bainbridge and cap a dramatic come-from-behind second half for the Crusaders in girls lacrosse last week.

The Spartans dominated the contest in Sammamish from the start and built a commanding 7-3 lead by the intermission.

Midway through the second half, Bainbridge extended its margin to 8-4.

The Crusaders’s improbable comeback was sparked by Valerie Vachris, who sliced and diced across the crease at the 12:11 mark of the second and fired a shot past Bainbridge goalie Maddie Stevenson to pull Eastside Catholic to within three, 8-5.

Just over a minute later, Ashley Blanton took advantage of a Bainbridge turnover to bring the Crusaders within two at 8-6.

The Spartans’ Sally Marx briefly made it 9-6 with her second goal of the night, but the Crusaders’ Shelby Broadman and Vachris followed with back-to-back scores to narrow the gap to a single goal and set up the tying opportunity.

With Bainbridge in a slow-down offense looking to preserve its lead and spotless record in the final minutes of the game, Banks beat Stevenson for the tying goal and broke Bainbridge’s three-game win streak.

Paige Brigham scored a team-high three goals for the Spartans, while midfielder Sallie Marx added two goals of her own.

Vachris led the Crusaders on offense with three goals, while Banks and Broadman scored two each.

Stevenson recorded a game-high eight saves for the Spartans. Eastside Catholic goalkeeper Justice Gilbert finished with two saves on defense.

The tie put Bainbridge at 3-0-1. The Spartans next face Ballard (1-2-0) Tuesday, April 9 at Ballard High.