REID FESTEL scored Wakefield’s first goal in their first round State Tournament game in Foxboro on Monday. (File Photo)
FOXBORO — The Wakefield High boys’ lacrosse team traveled to Foxboro on Monday night for a first round matchup between the 24th-ranked road Warriors and the 9th-ranked Foxboro Warriors.
Foxboro came away with a 14-5 victory after controlling the final five minutes of the first half in which they scored 4 goals to lead 9-2 at the break and never letting Wakefield back into it.
“I thought we continued to battle throughout,” said Wakefield head coach Andy Wells. “At the end of the day, we just couldn’t get enough possessions or push transition enough to keep ourselves in the game.”
The road Warriors hung right with Foxboro during a tense, opening quarter. Wakefield had more possession and plenty of solid looks but they couldn’t convert. The defense also held strong throughout the 1st despite an eventual 3-0 lead for the home team with just a couple minutes left.
Wakefield made it 3-1 with under a minute left in the first on a goal by senior Reid Festel.
Freshman goalie Jaden Fullerton got the hockey assist after making a save on a close shot from just outside the crease and throwing a long pass up the right sideline to sophomore Cam Sartori who made the catch and took off, faking a dish to the middle which would have slowed the offense down and instead drawing a defender off Festel in front of the net. The senior took two steps in and finished over top of the goalie.
It was a fine way for the Warriors to end the quarter, giving them confidence that they could compete in all facets of the game. Despite the deficit, Wakefield’s first frame was a positive one.
“We were happy with how we started the game both offensively and defensively,” said Wells, referring more to the first half of the 1st quarter when the game was scoreless. “On defense, our communication was solid and we did a good job of supporting the interior of the defense. On offense, we had a handful of extended possessions but the Foxboro goalie made a lot of great saves to keep us off the board.
“Foxboro did a great job of getting the ball up field fast and they capitalized on their fast break opportunities and unsettled offense to give themselves the lead.”
The home Warriors found their rhythm in the second quarter, outscoring Wakefield 6-1 on their way to a big lead. The final five minutes was especially impressive, as Wakefield couldn’t stay in front of a devastating attack.
Before that outburst, Wakefield got their second goal from sophomore Brady Zdanowicz on a nice dodge from up top including a pump fake that got his defender to hesitate, followed by a low, rip into the bottom, left corner.
Foxboro’s runaway train to end the first half gave them an insurmountable lead and the road Warriors couldn’t chip away in the 3rd as Foxboro all but sealed it with an 11-2 lead after three.
To Wakefield’s credit, they kept fighting, scoring three goals in the 4th, two by sophomore Brady Walsh and one from sophomore Seamus Cable.
Walsh’s first, a top-shelf rip from an impossible angle on the left side, was assisted by Cable. His second came after freshman Connor Roszkowski battled for possession on the ensuing faceoff and set up the attack. Walsh took it from there, beating four defenders on an epic dodge and firing it home on the move to make it 14-4.
Cable’s goal was a similarly impressive individual effort, starting on the goal line and taking it out front before a lefty cannon on the run found its way past the goalie.
In the end, it was a disappointing conclusion to a solid season for Wakefield, who finished 7-11 overall, but the tourney loss provided plenty of great experience for a young team that will be returning everyone except Festel next year.
“This season, we were a young group so it was good for our team to continue getting playoff experience,” said Wells. “Moving into next season, we will be led by mostly upperclassmen and we believe that experience will show different results come playoff time.”
