It was No. 6 St. Mary’s game to loose with a seven-goal first quarter in Tuesday’s MIAA boys’ lacrosse match-up, Tuesday, as the Saints added four more goals to close out the Gilman Greyhounds, 11-7.
“The one thing is that this team is very coach-able and the way we practice is how we play the game,” St. Mary’s coach Rob Chomo said. “Everything is full speed so there isn’t a big jump on game days.
“We play four games within a game. After those 12 minutes, we evaluate and make adjustments.”
The Saints statistically won three of the four quarters in the Tuesday afternoon showdown, outscoring the Greyhounds 7-3, 1-0 and 2-1, but Gilman got the upper-hand in the final quarter, 3-1.
With the help of five Saint penalties in the final 12 minutes, Gilman took advantage of its man-advantages and saw scores from Max Greene, Ryan Tucker and Gordie Koerber, with Tucker following up a Koerber shot and keeping his toes on the outside of the crease while scooping the ball in.
“Our guys were very willing,” Gilman coach Brooks Matthews said. “I don’t think we were quite as tough on the ground balls as we needed to be, and we just have to learn and feel the sense of urgency you need to have to play in this league.”
St. Mary’s Nate Lewnes finished the game with three goals, two of them diving goals and all of them coming in the first quarter, while Spencer Coyle laced two of his own, fighting through the bigger Gilman defense and getting to the net.
“On the defensive end, we are very aggressive,” Chomo said. “We check hard and get after it, so when we come into a game situation, those boys shouldn’t feel anything different during the game. “The attackmen are getting beat on pretty good at practice, too.”
John Kluh was putting on the moves in his one-goal performance, shaking and baking his way though the Gilman defense, while teammates Robert Fox, Pat Manley, Michael Bonacci, Braedon Graham and John Morgan also found the back of the net.
The Greyhounds were able to win the overall face-off battle, taking 12 of the 17 starts, which led to the seven goals scored on the day.
Tucker finished the game with two goals alongside teammates Koerber, and Greene, with Connor Doyle also slipping in a goal, but the Greyhounds know they will need to keep their heads high for the second game of the week.
“There is no choice,” Matthews said. “You have two games a week in the league and you are either going to buckle down and get better and play hard or your not. One game certainly is not the be-all end-all.”
St. Mary’s now sets up for a Friday night battle with No. 2 Boys’ Latin, while the Greyhounds take on Mount St. Joe.
“We will enjoy the win tonight, talk about how we did when we get back to the field house, and then it is Boys’ Latin on Friday,” Chomo said. “The good thing about this league is that you can’t over celebrate a win and you can’t dwell on a loss, because you have another tough team coming at you right away.
“We will enjoy this one for now, but come right back and be prepared for the Lakers.”
No. 6 St. Mary’s 11, Gilman 7
STM 7 1 2 1 — 11
GIL 3 0 1 3 — 7
