July 28, 2010
New England high school champs crowned
by Staff Report/
St. John's Prep defeated Duxbury to win the Massachusetts Division 1 boys title.
MORE IMAGES 
Across New England, the high school lacrosse season is finished. The champions — precious few of them, really — have been crowned. As for everybody else, it’s time to keep on waiting ’til next year. Here’s how things went down in each state, and preps.
CONNECTICUT
Perennial Class M powerhouse Darien added to its sterling championship record this season as it cruised to its sixth consecutive state title.
This year’s stacked Darien squad boasted four All-Americans in defenders George Benitez and Eric Parnon, goalie Andrew West and precocious sophomore attackman Case Matheis, whose nine goals iced the championship win over New Fairfield.
“It never gets old,” said coach Jeff Brameier. “They were a great bunch of kids, they worked really hard in the offseason and certainly we’re a great team during the season.”
The Blue Wave went 19-3 on the season, their three losses coming against eventual New York champ Manhasset, Pennsylvania champ Conestoga and Class L strength Greenwich.
Darien’s FCIAC rivals New Canaan (17-5) and Wilton gave the Blue Wave some trouble in the quarterfinals and semifinals respectively, but Darien escaped by just one goal in each game.
New Fairfield earned itself the top-seed in the tournament, going 19-3 in the regular season and cruising through the early rounds with crushing wins over Avon and Conard.
In Class L, Cheshire was able to end Fairfield Prep’s championship streak at four taking the crown with a 9-8 win.
This year’s Ram class was highlighted by senior Todd Heritage, who compiled an astounding 140 points on 55 goals and 85 assists. The team also saw solid contributions from Nick Carisio (70 goals, 25 assists) and Mike Jordan (51 goals, 9 assists).
Fairfield Prep was 17-6 overall and 9-3 in the Class, with the Jesuits’ three in-class losses coming at the hands of the Rams.
They earned their championship bid by upsetting No. 1 seed Staples (18-2) by a goal in the semifinals. Greenwich was dropped by the Jesuits in the quarterfinals.
Weston was king of the small-school hill in Class S with a 7-6 win over St. Joseph (15-7). The championship was the fourth straight for first-year coach John Mathews, who was an assistant at consistently strong Fairfield Prep for three years before taking the new gig.
High-seed Ledyard (20-1) put together the best record in the regular season before taking a 13-9 loss to St. Joseph in the semifinals.
In girls lacrosse, New Canaan’s girls took a step towards matching its prolific boys counterparts this year earning the team’s first-ever championship with a 10-9 win over Greenwich. The Rams (19-3) had a few early season stumbles but recovered to enter the tournament with momentum.
Greenwich had a tough semifinal battle against Darien, whom the Cardinals barely managed to get past, 11-9. Darien knocked out tourney high-seed Newtown, whose 15-1 regular-season record earned them the top spot, in the quarterfinals with a 19-12 rout.
Six-seed Glastonbury made it to the semifinals before New Canaan handed them an 11-5 loss.
After a tough 8-7 first-round squeaker over Trumbull, Fairfield-Ludlowe was able to cruise to the Division 2 title with a trio of convincing wins against Granby Memorial, Haddam-Killingworth and division runner-up Staples.
Staples’ Lady Wreckers managed a solid run at the title, blowing out their opponents by a combined 24 goals in the early rounds before the finals loss. Haddam-Killingworth and St. Bernard rounded out the final four. — Braden Campbell
RHODE ISLAND
Since the inception of interscholastic lacrosse in Rhode Island in 2001, girls Division 1 play has been decidedly one-sided, with Barrington taking nine out of 10 championships.
This year, however, proved that the race for the title is wide open.
“The caliber of the play overall has increased to where a much higher percentage of players really play the game well now,” said Barrington coach Peter Brock.
Despite the parity at the top, the Eagles were able to hold on to earn their third consecutive crown. They went 11-4 this year, with two of the losses coming at the hands of state runner-up LaSalle Academy. The team was led by senior Becky Bracken, who accumulated 59 points over the season. Her clutch pair of goals in the championship game earned her the post-season MVP nod.
LaSalle’s Rams were the odds-on favorite for the title going into the tournament after they went a perfect 12-0 in the regular season. Falynn McCartney and Rachel Padilla each scored 53 points on the season.
East Greenwich (6-7), Moses Brown (6-8) and North Kingstown (4-8) rounded out the D-1 top 5, and despite all having records below .500, they played close games against Barrington and LaSalle in proving Brock’s point about the emerging parity in the state.
St. Mary’s Bay View earned the Division 2 title on the strength of its eight seniors, whose experience and poise earned the team its first championship in four finals appearances. The Bengals – who finished the season atop the Laxpower rankings for Rhode Island girls – stumbled out of the gate with an early loss to Cranston West, but reeled off the next 13 straight en route to the title.
“The experience has a lot to do with it, as the older kids, they’ve been through it before and were unfazed by it,” said coach Joe Kettelle.
Mt. Hope was the D-2 runners-up, falling by two in the title game after a 10-win regular season. Prout and Cranston West, both 9-5, were the other chief competitors. Cranston’s Ashley Signoriello led the division with 62 goals and 13 assists.
Outside of an early loss to Warwick Veterans, South Kingstown was untouchable in Division 3 this season. The Rebels’ lights-out defense held opponents to an average of just under eight goals, the second-best mark in the state.
Runners-up East Providence led the state with a 5.5 GAA, but lacked the offense needed to bring home the trophy.
North Providence (9-4) and Classical (8-5) also had strong seasons.
In boys Division 1, there was just one name – LaSalle Academy– all season long.
That lasted until the championship game, when Moses Brown handed the Rams their first loss of the season in a 9-8 overtime siege.
“To be honest, the game could have gone either way,” said Moses Brown coach Mike Fraioli. “It was about as evenly matched as you can possibly get.”
Moses Brown (15-3) started off the season with a pair of tight losses, one of which was a battle against LaSalle. The Quakers proceeded to win 13 of the next 14, the lone loss coming once again at the hands of the Rams.
Fraioli’s squad was led by first-team all-staters Nick Capalbo (138 saves), and attackman Matt Hooper (40 points).
Midfielder David Appolonia was first on the team in scoring with 35 goals and 25 assists.
LaSalle’s boys were a perfect 14-0 in the regular season before their finals setback. Despite the loss, coach Steve O’Donnell said he was pleasantly surprised by his boys’ performance; even after the championship, the Rams were the top boys team in the state according to Laxpower.
“We did better than I planned coming off a season where we lost some critical players,” O’Donnell said. “We had some young talent step up that we didn’t expect to, and the upperclassmen I expected to … did.”
O’Donnell cited the leadership of midfielder Andrew Messner as a key to the team’s success; his .720 face-off win percentage didn’t hurt either. Ryan Poirier led the Rams with 33 goals and 29 assists.
Portsmouth (9-5) and Bishop Hendricken (4-10) put together solid semifinal runs.
Division 2 belonged to Mt. Hope from start to finish, as the Huskies went 14-1 on the season (12-0 in the division) with a crushing 8-2 win over Mt. Saint Charles in the finals. Alan Williams led the way with 43 goals and 20 assists.
Mt. Saint Charles(9-5) and Prout (7-5) were the best of the rest in D-2.
Middletown (14-3) took the Division 3 win over then-undefeated Cumberland in a tense 8-7 thriller. South Kingstown(13-4) and East Greenwich(9-6) were eliminated in the semifinals. — Braden Campbell
MASSACHUSETTS
The Massachusetts lacrosse championships in 2010 came down to one streak broken, one streak continued, one streak in the making and a return to prominence for some big names.
The biggest story was in the biggest division, Boys Division 1, where Duxbury is so used to winning that it may have celebrated a victory a bit too early, which may have been cause for ultimate defeat.
Seeking its seventh consecutive title and squaring off against St. John’s Prep – which had stopped the school’s 99-game win streak last year and had won an early-season match-up in 2010 – Duxbury saw Seamus Connelly score the go-ahead goal with just 18 seconds left in regulation, which sent the partisans at Harvard Stadium into a frenzy. Even the Duxbury bench seemed ready to start the celebration.
But St. John’s Prep’s Colin Blackwell won the ensuing faceoff, drove the right side of the field and fired a shot that hit the post, only to land at the feet of the Eagles’ Garrett Campbell, who whacked it in for the tying goal. In overtime, defender James Fahey took a clearing pass from goalie Nick Triano – who had made a game-saving stop – and drove the length of the field to give the Eagles the 12-11 victory and the championship hardware.
It was one of two titles – and three stellar games – played at Harvard on June 16.
The Division 2 boys contest featured perennial power Medfield against resurgent power Hingham, and it was a game of runs and stout defense. Medfield scored four goals to turn a 3-3- halftime score into a 7-3 edge, only to see the Harbormen come all the way back to tie it at 7 with just three minutes left in the game. The squads then played a scoreless overtime, meaning that Medfield had been held scoreless for more than 30 minutes; just seconds into the second overtime, that changed when Matt Bletzer rocketed home the game-winner on a pass from M.J. Keady to win it.
With the win, the Warriors advanced to the June 19 championship game in Worcester, meeting Western Mass. champion Longmeadow.
Where the Warriors’ cumulative margin of victory heading into the finals had been just five goals in total, the title tilt was an easy-breathing affair; after falling behind 1-0, scoring four quick goals and seeing Longmeadow mount a comeback to 4-3, Medfield hammered out a 14-goal run that lasted from the middle of the first quarter to the end of the third. The 19-6 final score game Medfield its first championship since 2007, when they also dropped Longmeadow to take the crown.
In Division 3, the championship game at Harvard represented a backyard brawl. Last year’s champion, Scituate, moved up a weight class, leaving the neighboring towns – and South Shore League rivals – Cohasset and Norwell to fight it out. The Skippers and Clippers – Cohasset and Norwell – took the No. 1 and No. 6 seeds into the tournament, and had smooth rides to Cambridge.
Cohasset, which was playing in a title game for the sixth time in the last 10 seasons and seeking its third crown in the last half decade, came out flying. After Norwell battled back to make it 5-3 with about a minute left in the half, Cohasset coach Stew Curran called timeout and drew up a play; it not only worked, but when faceoff man Alex Kinnealey – who won 16 of 22 draws on the day – popped out the next draw and set up another score, it was two goals in a 17-second span that changed the game.
Norwell made a late comeback to narrow the score to its final of 10-8, but could not spring the upset.
While the overtimes and last-minute heroics of some of the boys’ games were big, the girls Division 1 title game may have actually topped them.
Senior midfielder Paige Cuscovitch allowed Longmeadow to climb into a tie with Framingham, 7-7, with just 15 seconds remaining in the game. With everyone expecting overtime, Framingham All-American Tanner Guarino fired a shot that crossed the goal line with just one second left in regulation, giving Framingham an 8-7 win.
It was a rematch of the 2007 title tilt – also won by Framingham 8-7 – and the seventh consecutive year that Longmeadow’s Lady Lancers have gone down in the finals.
In Division 2, defending champion Norwell – which won with a new coach in 2009 – repeated the feat, with Kara Connerty leading the Clippers to a 15-10 win over Winchester. Norwell jumped out early and was never headed, led by six goals from Kate MacDonald, a senior who will play at Northwestern next year; MacDonald’s last goal of the night was the 100th score of her career.
Junior Molly Cox added four goals. — Susan N. Buddle
NEW HAMPSHIRE
The 2010 New Hampshire lacrosse season was all about schools getting back to the state championship game. In the six divisions, three teams won consecutive titles. In two other divisions, the 2009 runner-up came back and finished the job. One division even had a rematch of last year’s title game.
In boys Division 1, it was business as usual for the elite teams. Bishop Guertin, Pinkerton Academy, and Hanover— which had combined to win the previous five state titles — all made the semifinals. They were joined by Exeter, a school continually just on the outside of the big three. The four schools also were the state’s top four teams, regardless of division, according to LaxPower.
Bishop Guertin advanced to the finals for the sixth consecutive year, beating Pinkerton, and faced off against Exeterin the finals. Guertin won 15-10 to take home its third championship in that six-year span.
Bow once again was the team to beat in Division 2. The Falcons finished with the best record in-conference, and the team’s seniors reached the championship game in all four years of their high school careers.
Bedford was Bow’s closest competition, finishing 16-3 overall and one game behind Bow in conference, but could not overcome the hurdle of the Falcons. Bedford lost to Bow in the teams’ regular-season matchup 11-10, and then fell victim by a single goal in the championship game, losing 14-13 in an overtime thriller.
Division 3 for the boys was the one division of real change in all of New Hampshire high school lacrosse. In 2009, Kearsarge took the crown, beating Monadnock. What a difference a year made, because neither school could even make it back to the semifinals in 2010.
Derryfield, which finished fourth in ’09, met Kingswood– which was an under-.500 team in 2009 – and snuck away with the championship in a 12-11 thriller.
In girls play, it’s hard to believe that Londonderry could improve on a 2009 season that saw the team finish as state champs with a record of 19-1, but improve is exactly what the Lancers did.
Londonderry finished the season undefeated with a record of 20-0 en route to winning its second consecutive championship, beating Pinkerton Academy, 8-3. Throughout the season, the Lancers’ margin of victory was more than 12 in half of its games.
In Division 2, Bow, which had won four of the previous seven state titles, continued its trend of winning only in odd-numbered years.
The 2009 runner-up, Bishop Guertin, got its revenge in 2010 by defeating Bow 12-9 in the semifinals, and then went on to beat Portsmouth in the championship game, 10-9.
Winnancunnet, the 2009 runner-up, finished with the best regular-season record at 14-1 overall, but fell to Portsmouthin the other semifinal, 12-11.
In Division 3, Hollis-Brookline finished the regular season undefeated in the conference for a second straight year, and with only one loss overall to Division 1 runner-up Pinkerton Academy. Dominant in the same fashion as Londonderry, Hollis-Brookline won 10 games by 10 or more goals.
The championship game was a rematch of 2009 between the Cavaliers and Kearsarge, but Kearsarge was no closer this year than last, dropping the match 10-4, a goal difference greater than last year’s 11-6 final score, and giving Hollis-Brookline a second consecutive title. — Phillip Shore
VERMONT
There’s nothing like a championship game that features two of the best teams in the state who also happen to be bitter rivals. It creates the kind of atmosphere that flusters favorites and turns underdogs into superheroes.
And so, as the top-seeded Chelsea Red Devils lined up against the seventh-ranked Burr & Burton Bulldogs for the third straight year in the Vermontgirls Division 2 title game, it was one of those proverbial contests where fans can “throw out the records.”
That’s precisely what Burr & Burton did, stunning Chelsea 9-7, handing the Red Devils’ their first loss in 35 games, dating back to another title-game nail-biter in 2008. With the win, Burr & Burton capped the season with a 10-7 record, but holding the big trophy. Chelsea finished at 16-1 overall.
While the Bulldogs took home their fourth D-2 title, the Harwood Union Highlanders captured their first championship in school history when they captured the boys Division 2 title. Facing Rice Memorial – which had not lost to a D-2 squad all season – the Highlanders came away with a close 13-11 victory.
From the opening whistle, Harwood Union (16-2) controlled the field, commanding an early 9-2 advantage in the first half. The Green Knights (16-4), looking for their first title since 2005, battled back to cut the lead to 11-9 with just over nine minutes remaining. In response, the Highlanders scored twice to seal the victory, powered by senior Damien Gile’s five goals.
Not to be outdone, the Division 1 finals had their share of riveting moments as well. In the boys’ championship, third-seeded Essex Junction pulled out a momentous 10-5 upset over top-ranked Champlain Valley to give the Hornets their third title in four seasons. With 15 seniors on the team, the Hornets dominated – despite losing key starter Evan McCrea in the first half – to stun the Redhawks. Both teams end the year with identical 17-2 records, but it was the Hornets who took home the championship trophy.
On the girls Division 1 end, Mt. Anthony Union entered the finals with the top-seed, but had never before won a title, and the Patriots faced the imposing second seed, Middlebury Union, which was looking for the eighth title in school history. The Patriots stood up to the pressure, and ultimately coasted to a 12-7 victory. It wasn’t so easy early; playing without senior midfielder Eliza Carver, who was out with a season-ending knee injury, Middlebury Union (15-4) closed out the first half leading 3-2. Unfazed, the Patriots’ (17-1) took advantage of the depth in their bench to tear through the remainder of the game and walk away with the championship crown. — Ally Mielnicki
PREP SCHOOLS
With a few exceptions, the traditional prep school powerhouses remained at the top of their leagues this year across New England. Because of a shortened school year, most prep school leagues don’t play championship games, so that regular-season games determine championship winners.
Three New England boys prep teams made the nation’s final Top 25, according to LaxPower, with Deerfield Academy at No. 10, the Salisbury School at No. 14 and Avon Old Farms at No. 20.
Boys
Independent School League: Middlesex School won the ISL by posting a 14-1 record, with its only loss coming in overtime to a greatly-improved St. Sebastian’s (15-2). Middlesex will lose 13 seniors, including all-ISL goalie Conor Murphy and all-ISL midfielder Wilt Vivian, who takes his game to Providence next year. The Governor’s Academy, another league contender, finished 14-2.
Western New England, Div. 1: The Salisbury School won its first outright Western NEPSAC championship this year, going 13-0 in divisional play and finishing 13-1. Salisbury rode senior goalie Jamie Faus and attack/midfielder Ty Thompson to the historic season. DeerfieldAcademy’s lone loss in a 15-1 season was to Salisbury, so it did not take the league hardware despite being LaxPower’s top-ranked team in all of New England.
Western New England, Div. 2/3: The Millbrook School surprised top competition in Western New England by winning Western NEPSCA Div. 2, going 9-0 in conference play and 11-5 overall. The team was led by senior scorers Chase Cochran, Matt Hetherington, and Matt Job.
Chase Collegiate School dominated Div. 3, going 9-0 in conference play, and 19-4 overall.
New England North: Brewster Academywon the Northern New England League championship this year, finishing 13-3 and 5-0 in conference play. Defenseman Riley Merritt will play at Bentley next year; attackman Jared Boudreau was named league Player of the Year and moves on to Drexel.
Eastern Independent League: Portsmouth Abbey returned to the front of the EIL pack, going 8-0 in league play and 12-3 overall. Defending champion Pingree finished with a league record of 7-1, losing only to Portsmouth Abbey. The Highlanders finished 10-6 overall.
Girls
Independent School League: Thayer Academy won the ISL championship this year, finishing 12-1-1 overall and 9-0-1 in league play. Thayer was led by midfielder Bryn Boucher and attack Marissa Daly, both of whom played in the 2010 Women’s Division national tournament. Senior Lindsay Allard – headed to Dartmouth in the fall – was an All-American at midfield. The Brooks School was neck-and-neck with Thayer throughout the season, including an 11-11 overtime tie against their ISL rivals. Brooks was in the hunt for a share of the ISL crown until losing its last game of the season against Governor’s Academy.
Founders’ League: Loomis Chaffee dominated the Founders League, and any other team that got in its way, finishing 17-0 and being the only New England prep school to capture a spot in LaxPower’s top 50 nationally (34th). The team was led by three All-Americans in seniors Kate McCarthy and Molly Paduda, and junior Alexandra Crerend. McCarthy will move on to BostonCollegeto play soccer, and Paduda will play lacrosse and field hockey at Bowdoin College.
The Hotchkiss Schoolhad the indignity of playing Loomis Chaffee twice – the first and last games of the season – but finished 10-4 overall.
Eastern Independent League: The Pingree School won the EIL this year by running through the league undefeated, going 9-0. — Ian B. Murphy
MAINE
The 2010 Maine state lacrosse championships featured a long-awaited climb to the pinnacle, redemption, perfection and even a somber dose of real life as Portland’s Fitzpatrick Stadium hosted four memorable games under a bright and sizzling June sky.
Class B girls got things started as familiar foes did battle. Two-time defending champion Waynflete looked to make it three in a row, but North Yarmouth Academy— which lost all five previous state game meetings with the Flyers (including each of the past two years) — finally broke through. The Panthers scored the game’s first three goals, held Waynflete senior star Morgan Woodhouse in check (two goals), never let the Flyers (12-3) go on a patented run, and dominated draws and possession throughout. NYA got goals from six different players, but the biggest news was who didn’t score, senior standout Courtney Dumont, who didn’t even attempt a shot.
The Panthers (12-3) also got 12 saves from senior Ashley Salerno, many in clutch situations down the stretch.
The Class B boys’ contest followed and featured the two of Maine’s premier programs, two-time defending champion Yarmouth and long-time power Cape Elizabeth. The Capers hadn’t won a state title in what to them felt like an eternity, 2005, but woke up the echoes with a 7-6 victory. Cape Elizabeth (12-3) led most of the way, went ahead to stay on junior Timmy Takach’s goal 22 seconds into the fourth period and rode three goals from injured senior All-American Tommy Foden, the stellar defense of senior All-American Ben Brewster and junior goalie Jack Roos’ 10 saves to the win. The Clippers (13-2) were paced by two goals each from seniors Steven Petrovek and Colby Shields.
The Class A girls’ game – third on the championship slate -- featured the undefeated Red Storm of Scarborough going for their second championship (and first since 2006), battling the lone first-time finalist on the day, Mt. Ararat. Scarborough featured two unique and accomplished seniors, Ellie Morin and Brittany Ross, who won undefeated championships in field hockey and basketball and were hoping to do the same in lacrosse.
It was no surprise when they did. Morin had two goals and an assist, Ross scored once and senior Lindsay Hagerman had two goals and added four assists as the Red Storm triumphed, 11-7. Scarborough closed the first half on a 5-1 run and never looked back as it finished 15-0. The Eagles (10-4) got three goals from senior Whitney Dano.
The Class A boys’ contest was more than just a game. Sadly. Two nights prior to the championship, Portland’s Garrett Cormier, a sophomore, who was injured this spring, was killed in an automobile accident. Cormier’s family urged the Bulldogs, the defending state champs, to go ahead and play the game and they did, albeit with heavy hearts. Portland honored Cormier in a pregame moment of silence and there weren’t a lot of dry eyes in the house when Garrett’s brother, Pat, a junior, took the opening faceoff and won it. The Bulldogs scored first against a Scarborough squad that went just 7-5 in the regular season before peaking at the right time, but it wasn’t meant to be.
The Red Storm rattled off five straight goals, then — after Portland tied the game at 5, thanks to three straight goals from junior All-American Caleb Kenney — Scarborough (11-5) went ahead to stay on sophomore John Blaisdell’s goal late in the third. Matching its girls team with a title win, the Red Storm held on, 8-6, behind four goals from senior Nick Neugebauer. The loss was the Bulldogs first in 15 games on the season, but was put in perspective. — Michael Hoffer
