It's June, so the Shore Regional girls lacrosse team must be playing for another sectional title.

Every year at this time, it seems, head coach Chris Raichle's squad is gathering championships, and this year is no exception.

With a fourth Shore Conference Tournament title already under wraps, the Blue Devils moved one step closer to defending the NJSIAA South B title with a win over rival Rumson-Fair Haven on Tuesday, 16-6.

With the win, Shore moved on to the sectional championship, where as the top seed they will host sixth-seeded Seneca later today.

On Tuesday, Shore used a balanced attack to overwhelm the Bulldogs, as a total of seven Blue Devil players scored at least a goal, and six girls notched at least an assist. Kelly Draper led the onslaught with four goals.

In what was somewhat of a rubber game between Shore and RFH (Shore won the first game while the teams tied the second time around), the Blue Devils left little doubt on Tuesday, jumping out to an 8-3 half-time lead on goals by Liz Ferraro, Jenna Martino, Draper, Danielle Scarrone, Lauren Woodie and Alie Houlis.

On the other side of the field, Rumson managed just a pair of goals from Bridget Waclawik and a single goal from Hope Atkinson. And the second half was more of the same, as the Blue Devils' remarkable balance simply overwhelmed the Bulldogs, who finished the year at 17-3-1.

While Shore's postseason success comes as a surprise to no one, it also wouldn't surprise Raichle to see his team advance beyond today's sectional final.

"We're peaking at the right time," the seventh-year coach said. "And we've played a lot of the top teams in the state in our out-of-conference games, which is why we got the top seed [in the section].

"Skill-wise, I think this is the best team we've ever had," the coach added. "I think four years ago we were a more athletic team, but we've got so many skilled players this year."

As a result, Raichle hopes his team (20-1-1) can surpass last year's finish.

"We won the South B title last year, and our goal was to do that again, and hopefully win the overall state championship," he said.

- Vin Rapolla