Planets align for lacrosse 4-peat!
MOON TWP — Chris Sicher has scored a lot of goals for the Mars boys lacrosse team this season.
His third and final tally Friday night against Hampton carries with it a bit more weight for the senior member of the team's attack.
Sicher's shot with 1:52 left in overtime handed Mars a 9-8 victory in the WPIAL Class AA championship game at Robert Morris University's Joe Walton Stadium.
It is the fourth consecutive district title for the Planets.
“This is a dream come true,” said Sicher. “I was going high with my shots all game. I knew if I went low, he (Hampton goalie Matt Huskey) wouldn't be expecting it.”
The score was assisted by senior Mike Doyle on a play the Planets have much confidence in. Just prior to the score, Mars coach Bob Marcoux called a timeout to talk things over with his players.
“The play is called '13 Free' and is Doyle feeding Sicher,” said Marcoux. “It's been our bread and butter this season. Half of Mike's assists have gone to Chris.”
Mars (18-3) never led during the game and trailed 8-6 with just over three minutes remaining.
Garrett Reinke scored to pull the Planets to within 8-7 and Jacob Caringola got the equalizer with 2:24 left.
“It's pretty simple,” said Hampton coach Jim Vollberg. “Mars made the plays when they had to tonight.”
But it was the Talbots who held momentum and the lead for much of the night.
Leading 6-4 late in the third period, the Talbots saw their lead erased when Sicher and Wes Scurci both scored to tie the game at 6.
Hampton responded with goals from Will Meglio and Max Saltrelli to regain their two-goal edge.
“I was still confident at that point that we'd have a chance to win,” said Marcoux. “It was just a question of getting the bounces to go our way.”
“We told our guys before the game to expect a tight one,” Marcoux added. “We had to win the fourth quarter. Our seniors stepped up.”
One of them was goalie Gavin Honeycutt, who stopped a blistering shot from Meglio just 23 seconds before Sicher's game-winner.
“We had to keep the energy up,” said Honeycutt, who turned away eight Hampton shots in the game. “Defensively, we stayed with the basics and it worked.
“It feels great to be part of this.”Mars, a team used to scoring goals in bunches, was held to just one in the first quarter — freshman Austin Cote's tally that sliced Hampton's early lead to 2-1 with 2:10 left.“Hampton was winning faceoffs and keeping possession,” said Marcoux. “Our guys were a bit jumpy with the turnovers early on. Maybe it was nerves.”Sicher and Scurci (2) both scored multiple goals for Mars and Doyle added one score.Zach Krempasky, Saltrelli and Meglio each scored twice for Hampton while Huskey stopped seven shots.“Each (title) is truly unique because each group is different,” Marcoux said. “But this one may be the sweetest, seeing how the guys fought through things tonight and how they responded.”Mars will face Trinity, the fourth-place team from District 3, in the first round of the state playoffs Tuesday at North Allegheny's Newman Stadium, time to be determined.Don't expect a title-hangover for the Planets. Mars has reached the state semifinals each of the last two years.“This is just a prelude to states,” said Sicher. “We're ready to go.”Quaker Valley 12, Freeport 10Evan Frund was not an unknown entering the WPIAL Class AA boys lacrosse consolation game. Freeport coach Dave Riley knew of his ability and knack for scoring in clutch situations, but was hoping to avoid seeing much of it Friday afternoon.Frund did not oblige.Quaker Valley's senior on the attack was a thorn in the side of the Yellowjackets the entire game, scoring seven total goals and three times in the fourth quarter of a 12-10 victory.“(Frund and David Kraus) are the top players on their offense,” said Riley. “Quaker Valley's coach, Chip Hansen, is my best friend. We talk five days every week, so he knows a lot about us and I know a lot about them.”Freeport's offense pushed the issue several times in the game. One instance straddled the third and fourth periods when Garrett Schauffhauser and Case Haberstroh both scored to tie the game at 8. Frund then commenced his final scoring spree.Schaffhauser and Haberstroh both scored late, but Freeport (9-9) failed to pull even. They ended the game with six and three goals, respectively, while Sean Fennell scored once.Freeport nearly made the state playoffs in only its fifth season of varsity play.“A win here would have been an enormous step for us,” said Riley, “but I still think we took a big step in bringing Freeport lacrosse to the forefront. We have good athletes who are committed to learning more about lacrosse.”
