Boys’ Lax Liquidates Hebron
Upper Paddy Bogart takes the face-off against a Hebron midfielder, both players low and eager to capture the possession of the ball. After a slow start, Exeter and Hebron Academy are tied 2-2. The whistle blows, and Bogart wrestles for the ball, scooping it up from under the Hebron player and hustling downfield. He rushes around all of the opposing team’s defenders, heading straight for the goal. In the eight-meter, he makes a quick fake right, knocking out the goalie and shoots it into the corner of the net for a beautiful goal, the first in his varsity career. Big Red took this momentum and kept the action up for a high scoring 19-6 win this past Saturday their trip to Hebron, Maine.
As a starting midfielder, Bogart had quite the impact on the game not only in the eight-meter, but in controlling possessions for Big Red. Senior Seth Bowman raved about Bogart as a center, “Both of the face off specialists had an outstanding day, allowing us to control the ball for much of the game.”
Exeter’s offensive success was attributed to the team’s ability to work together and contribute equally. More than six players scored last Saturday, and the boys showed a mastery of both fast breaks and settled offence. Senior and co-captain Tanner McGowan commended his team’s efforts across the board, “The goal distribution was wide, with contributions from many players. We scored a few in transition, several in settled situations, and a few more on the man-up. Overall, there were great goals from everyone.”
One of these contributions came from senior Ty Deery. Bowman added, “Ty Deery had an exciting goal, his first of the season, dodging past his defender and finishing with a nice shot past the goalie.”
The team took advantage of its lead to create some plays. Senior Andrew McGurrin said, “For sure the best play of the game was…Ryan Welch scoring his third goal of the day.”
“The team was energetic on the sideline, everyone was supporting each other."
Lower Danny Colon also described the team’s peak performance, “The team was energetic on the sideline, everyone was supporting each other. There was a great play where we connected three or four passes, and Chris Fowler finished in tight and took a big hit after he scored.”
Ahead of the pack in goals was the game’s definitive MVP, senior Paul Miller. “Paul Miller was a big contributor to the team in this game, scoring too many goals to even count,” McGowan said.
Colon shared similar sentiments regarding Miller’s successes. “Paul Miller had seven goals, some really hard shots that picked the corners.” Miller’s hard work on his shot is definitely paying off, bringing the team to a great win—their teams ninth of the season.
In conjunction with an explosive offense, Big Red had great performances defensively, too, which kept them ahead in the game. A lot of this defensive success can be credited to goalie, senior Conor Hunt. McGowan praised his goalie, “Conor Hunt played great in the cage. This game saw big contributions from everyone on the team.”
Assistant Coach Dave Huoppi also complimented Hunt on his performance, “Although many different players on the team contributed goals, Conor Hunt did a great job as our goalie.”
Looking forward, the team wants to perfect their settled game and clean up set plays. Huoppi elaborated on this goal and said, “In preparation for our next game against Kimball Union, will we continue to work on our settled offense and defense in practice this week.”
McGowan added, “The team is working on keeping the intensity level high and playing four quarters at 100 percent. We will practice hard and come out ready to compete on Wednesday.”
Lacrosse fans can get excited for a big home game against Milton Academy this Saturday where Big Red is determined to secure another win. McGurrin concluded, “I’m looking forward to the big games we have as the season finishes up.”