Quite the finishing kick
JEFFERSON TWP — Leading by three goals at halftime, the Mars boys lacrosse team still wasn't where it wanted to be.
The Planets spent the second half making up for it.
Mars tallied 12 of the 13 goals scored in the second half and remained undefeated in Class AA play with an 18-4 road victory against section foe Knoch Wednesday evening.
“We had some freshmen in the lineup tonight and were a bit tentative to start,” said Mars coach Bob Marcoux. “The second half, it was mostly about effort.”
The Planets (12-3) outscored the Knights 7-1 in the third period, beginning with senior attacker Mike Doyle's goal 29 seconds into the second half. He scored again two minutes later and teammate Chris Sicher scored three of his game-high five goals in the last 2:05 of the quarter.
After keeping the game close in the first half, Knoch was swept away by Mars' strong tide of momentum.
“It came down to simple mistakes,” said Knights' coach Nathan Barthlow. “Turnovers on offense and missing assignments on defense. There was very little communication on our end. They're things we can fix and hopefully we will by Friday when we play North Catholic.”
Contributing four goals to Mars' onslaught was freshman Wes Scurci, a reserve who earned a spot in the starting lineup after a strong performance in Tuesday's 22-6 win over Freeport.
Doyle scored four times and Nick Spotti found the net twice.
“Mike Doyle has made a huge difference,” said Marcoux. “He's playing the best lacrosse he's ever played and maybe the best lacrosse anybody has ever played for Mars. He makes everybody's job easier.”
Knoch senior Chase Mullen scored all four goals for the Knights.
“He's a smart player who sees the field very well,” Barthlow said. “He's got an awesome shot.”
Nick Fleishner stopped 12 shots for Knoch and Gavin Honeycutt seven for Mars. Lucas Musser finished the game in net for the Planets.
Mars won its third straight WPIAL championship last year, but the graduation of 18 seniors placed a lot of question marks on the team's chances in 2019.
Mars' three losses have come against Class AAA competition.
“We had a lot of good lacrosse players last year who were waiting for their chance,” said Marcoux. “They've risen to the challenge. We have a great youth program that feeds us a lot of talent.”
Sicher is one of the players who stepped into an expanded role this season and flourished. He is currently second on the team in goals and points.
“We aren't surprised at all at how well we've played this year,” he said. “Actually, I'm a bit surprised that we've lost three games.
“We feel we're right where we should be (leading the section) and are looking to have a four-peat in the WPIAL.”
The Planets travel to Sewickley Academy on Saturday.
