Raiders roll along
JACKSON TWP — The field was not tilted in Seneca Valley's favor, it just seemed that way.
The Raiders' boys lacrosse team outshot Bethel Park 40-11 and pounded the Black Hawks 11-2 under the lights Thursday at NexTier Stadium.
It took Seneca Valley just 33 seconds to tally the game's first score off the stick of Wendell Frank.
The Raiders had built a 4-0 edge by the end of the first quarter.
“Our offense is geared toward our attackers,” said SV coach Peet Poillon. “Our goal is to move the ball fast, regardless of who we are playing.”
Senior attackman David Hall led the Raiders (3-0) with three goals, including a pair of scores in the first half, after which Seneca led 7-1.
“We were able to run our offense all the way through tonight,” he said. “We like to get the ball to the back side, get a quick dodge down the alley, then pass and shoot.
“We worked on it in practice and executed it tonight.”
Bethel Park (2-1) struggled to maintain possession most of the night, thanks in part to a relentless defensive effort by the Raiders.
SV goalie Jake Succop stopped six of the eight shots he faced.
“When you've got a goalie like (Succop), as long as you give up shots in the right spots, he'll usually make the save,” said Poillon.
The Black Hawks are dealing with some growing pains early in the season.
“We have eight returning starters this year,” said Bethel Park coach Jonathan Lambert, “but many of them were starters last year by default because we had so many injuries.
“We're a pretty young team and we just want to get better,” he added.
SV's Mike Argyros, Derek Finney and Frank each scored twice in the victory. Mason Pynos and Jordan Kelly both added one goal.
Bethel Park's Chas Davis scored 56 seconds before halftime and John Pike added a tally late in the fourth quarter.
Jordan Hayes made 11 saves in net for the Black Hawks.
The Raiders' three wins include a 9-5 triumph over Medina (Ohio) on Tuesday.
This weekend, Seneca Valley is headed east to face Manheim Township and Hempfield, two schools in a loaded District 3.
“It's strong competition for us,” said Poillon of playing teams outside the WPIAL. “It allows us to play better teams with more experience and lets us know what we need to work on.”
“Medina had some really strong midfielders,” said Hall. “A few of them are going (Division I). After playing them, we can handle anything teams from the WPIAL throw at us.”
