Varsity Boys Lacrosse Against Portsmouth Abbey

By: Leo Zhang, Lyvia Zhou

On Saturday, April 16, the Academy’s varsity lacrosse team overcame Portsmouth Abbey by a scoreline of 11-4. At halftime, Portsmouth Abbey kept the game close, but Exeter found their rhythm in the second half and ultimately proved to be too much, adding a fifth win to their successful season.

Senior Shep Seba applauded his teammates’ great plays. According to Seba, senior Wyatt Mclaughlin “anchored the team down,” with strong saves as goalie. Seniors Michael Popik and Charlie McGurrin played great on-ball defense. Senior Will Gephart stepped in for face-off and skillfully utilized the wings to “battle for the ball,” while upper Drew McClutchy led the team in transition to offense as long stick middie. Prep Ryan Erghott scored a goal that aided in changing the game’s momentum after halftime.

Senior Jack O’Brien thought the game went well overall: “The weather was kind of rainy at first but kind of cleared out at the end. It was a bit physical towards probably the start of halftime. During the second half, we started to pull away from them and at the same time, the weather also started to improve.”

O’Brien also described his opponents: “They were just like a big team in terms of physical stature, and they moved the ball pretty well. I also think they had a good two-man game, which they utilized. They also played a zone defense, which worked in the first half, but once we figured out started moving the ball opening and creating more space, that didn't work as effectively.”

Seba pointed out the team’s tendency to start out slow in their matches: “The first half was very slow on both sides of the field. I think defensively we let in a couple of unforced errors…, and I think that that caused a couple of fast breaks and kind of kept the game pretty stagnant. On offense, we couldn't get anything going.”

During halftime, Seba emphasized Coach Matthew Callahan’s positive influence in the locker room: “Coming out of halftime, most guys have it in their head that we're doing this for us and he's just there to help us along the way. He’s really stepped into that new leadership role, bringing lots of energy to the game.”

When the second half started, Seba noted the shift in playing. “I think during the second half, we came out at halftime, and we stepped on the gas. The offense started cooking and putting some shots in, and we started seeing a real change of tides.” He attributed the shift of momentum to a specific moment in the game. “[Portsmouth Abbey] might have gotten a one-minute unnecessary roughness, and we were able to get momentum in our way. Once you see a team break down like that, even the smallest bits, you know, you've already won the game.”

Senior Will Gephart corroborated Seba’s remark, noting “we kept our composure well.” Going in the game, “we wanted to try and focus on playing our best lacrosse just regardless of who we were playing and making sure that we executed the way we wanted to.” 

O’Brien remembered his favorite moment of the game, which also added to the team spirit in the second half. “I think probably my favorite moment was that one of our defenders, Shep, shot a long stick goal, which was pretty awesome. It was good for him and gave some good energy to the team.”

After the game, Coach Callahan shared some of the things the team needed to improve on. “We did a lot of things well but can always have better stick skills and less unforced errors in the clearing game.”  

Seba agrees, “Keep playing fundamentally, keep it to the basics. We’ve got to go out there with a creative mindset. I want to see a full game from both sides of the field. I want to see people flow in. I want to see people having fun. I want to see people celebrating because I think that once we get to a point where things are happening naturally, it's going to feel a lot better as a team.”

O’Brien suggested working on moving the ball around more. “I think we're going to have to work better on our communication and just working the ball around on the first touch. I think that'll help open up offensive spaces especially, but then also moving up the field as we're breaking out the ball.” 

Looking to the future, Coach Callahan shared his hopes. “We have many strong opponents coming up, but we’re focused on taking the season one game at a time to make sure we are playing our best lacrosse.