Varsity boys’ lacrosse starts season solid, slows, starts to pick up

Junior+Josh+Mirsky%2C+senior+Nate+Jacobs%2C+junior+Mason+Berk+and+junior+Devlin+McCarthy+and+line+up+and+get+ready+for+their+first+game+against+Clarksburg+on+Mar.+22.

Photo by Tyler Barberis

Junior Josh Mirsky, senior Nate Jacobs, junior Mason Berk and junior Devlin McCarthy and line up and get ready for their first game against Clarksburg on Mar. 22.

The teams first game of the season was on Mar. 22 and was the team’s home opener, against Clarksburg. The boys dominated as they secured a 17-3 win over the Coyotes. 

Although early in the season, both sides of the field were firing on all cylinders for the team. The offense was doing a great job attacking and creating good scoring opportunities, while the defense was doing a great job limiting goals and putting pressure on the opponent’s offense. 

Three days following, on Mar. 25, the team stayed at home to play the Whitman Vikings. The Vikings are an incredibly experienced and skilled team, and brought home a devastating 12-3 win over the Patriots. The team now started to get a taste of how the season was going to go, and the realism started to set in that there are teams in the county that are big threats. 

Four days following, on Mar. 29, the team went on the road for their first away game against Walter Johnson. In an incredibly close battle all the way until the end, the boys could not pull through and just fell short to the Wildcats 9-8. 

Starting the season with a 1-2 record, the boys were hungry for more. “The WJ game was a hard-fought battle, but the team learned a lot from that loss pertaining to our play style and how we approach each game. Our focus now is to start up a win streak and keep the ball rolling for as long as possible,” senior defenseman Reza Abediyeh said.  

After two straight losses, the boys rallied and defeated Rochard Montgomery on the road 13-12 on Apr. 1. This was a huge win for the team, especially being that RM is a big rival. “Beating RM proves to us, and to other teams, that we have the potential to do damage even against some of the best teams in the county,” sophomore Matthew Repie said. 

On Apr. 5, the team came back home to play BCC – another extremely talented team. The Barons came in and stomped all over the boys as they left with a 9-2 win. Against better and better teams, the boys know that on each side of the field they have to step up; better and more solid defense, along with a more pressurized and aggressive offense. After a long spring break, the boys were not rusty at all, and played Paint Branch at home on April 20. They dominated, and left with a 15-4 victory over the Panthers, making their record  3-3.

Finally and most recently, the team played Sherwood, arguably one of the best teams in the county, on Apr. 22. After a surprisingly hard fought battle, the team lost shy of only three goals, as the final score was 11-8. “Even though we lost we were all very shocked. We all played really good, and jumped on a team over who came into this game way too overconfident. Even though we lost, this game really showed the team a lot of good and bright things,” senior Captain Nate Jacobs said.