ESPN

For the first time in the three years of our ESPN Boston MIAA boys' lacrosse Top 25 poll, a team other than Duxbury takes the No. 1 spot for the first time.

After interrupting the Dragons' 48-game winning streak against MIAA competition, Needham boosted to the poll position for the first time. It was Duxbury's first loss against an in-state opponent since the 2010 Division 1 championship game against St. John's Prep.

You can view the complete poll HERE.

CHANGE AT THE TOP
The last week was a perilous time for many of our Top 5 teams from last week. After watching its undefeated campaign unfurl against Duxbury, Lincoln-Sudbury finds itself saddled with a two-game losing streak, the result of another overtime loss to Concord-Carlisle.

Another Top 10 team also wasn't able to avoid the upset bug as Westford Academy, previously No. 8, slipped outside to No. 15 following three straight losses to Acton-Boxborough, St. John's Prep and Xaverian.

LANCERS TAKING OFF
After making their return to the Top 25 poll for the first time since the 2011 season a few weeks ago, Longmeadow has taken off in the poll. The Lancers make their highest-ever showing in the poll, checking in at No. 6 following a 16-1 dismantling of perennial Division 2 favorite Medfield.

Longmeadow will also be featured in perhaps the game week, traveling to No. 7 St. John's (Shrewsbury) in what could prove to be a preview of the Central/Western Mass. final.

BREAKING AND ENTERING
Three new teams populate the poll this week, with Grafton returning to the poll at No. 23.

Wayland, which produced an upset of its own knocking off Concord-Carlisle, make their first Top 25 showing since the 2011 season at No. 20. Westfield makes its first-ever poll appearance at No. 25 after the Bombers dispatched previously ranked South Hadley.

DUXBURY, Mass. – Nico Panepinto had the date committed to memory. He quickly recalled the date of last year’s MIAA Division 1 lacrosse final after Monday’s rematch against the No. 1-ranked Duxbury squad that had beaten Panepinto’s Needham Rockets at Harvard Stadium.

Taking a page from his own book, the Rockets’ senior attack replicated his personal performance that left revelers spellbound in last year’s championship game. Panepinto again scored four goals — each one increasing in stature and degree-of-difficulty — on Monday. But unlike last year’s meeting at season’s end, this time it was No. 6 Needham emerging with a two-goal win.

Joined by younger brother, Mike, the Panepintos combined to score all of the Rockets’ goals in a 6-4 win over the Dragons, dealing Duxbury its first in-state loss since the 2010 season. The Dragons (13-5) had won 48 straight MIAA games following their overtime loss to St. John’s Prep in that year’s Division 1 championship game.

“Sometimes he just gets in a zone and there’s no way to stop him,” Mike Panepinto said of his older brother.

Reminiscent of a valiant come-back effort in the aforementioned title game, Nico Panepinto again brought his best to the second of half of Monday’s bout.

Needham (14-2) trailed 3-1 at the half, but took the lead in the third quarter on a string of three straight goals from Nico Panepinto.

The Dragons fought back to tie the game, 4-4, with four minutes, 59 seconds to play in the game on a transition goal from Tyler Powers — the hero of Duxbury’s quadruple overtime win over Lincoln-Sudbury last week.

However, Mike Panepinto provided the heroics, answering just nine seconds later. The UMass commit won the ensuing faceoff cleanly, gained possession and, after drawing on two defenders and dodging straight on the cage, score the game-winner.

Nico Panepinto added his fourth of the game in the final minutes.

Needham goaltender Jack Curran made 11 saves to earn the win.

THE DYNAMIC DUO
The Rockets’ comeback in the third quarter very much started at the faceoff X.

Mike Panepinto was dominant on draws and in the third quarter won a string of three straight draws to start the second half. Each one of those face-off wins resulted in a Needham possession and, ultimately, goals his brother.

“He was consistently dominant today, and I think that paid off in the haul in terms of possessions,” Needham head coach Dave Wainwright said.

Not only did the Rockets set the tone in the second half, it also set the pace. After watching Duxbury score three goals off transition in the first half, including two from long-stick midfielder Jay Walsh, Wainwright was content to grind it out.

“One of our bigger worries that we had was the transition game,” Wainwright said. “We gave up some goals in the transition game today that were just quite scary. You put the ball on the ground, these guys can get up the field in a heartbeat.”

A FANTASTIC FINISH
For all of Nico Panepinto’s exploits against Duxbury, both in last year’s season-ending edition and Monday’s momentous win, perhaps none would be as memorable as his third goal scored in the Rockets’ win.

“That one-handed goal, I was going nuts,” Mike Panepinto said. “I didn’t even know what to say.”

That goal came at the 6:51 mark of the third quarter and provided Needham with its first lead of the game. After a faceoff win by Mike Panepinto set up the Rockets on another prolonged possession, Nico Panepinto drove the net, all the while drawing two Duxbury defenders to him. With one pole in pursuit and another in his pocket, the Fairfield signee drew a flag while being held just in front of the crease. Still, he was able to work his right arm free and, with his available hand, flick a bouncing shot into the net.

His reward for the gutsy move? A face full of turf as the Dragons’ defender collapsed on his back.

It drew rave reviews from the Needham sideline and that of his younger brother.

“I was glad to see him pull that off because he tried that last year against Duxbury,” Mike Panepinto said. “I’ve seen him try it a couple of times, but I’ve never actually seen him land it. That was pretty ridiculous that he pulled that off.

And, with it, he scored one of the prettiest and most important goals of year.

SUDBURY, Mass. – When it was finally over, the members of the Duxbury lacrosse coaching staff stood in silence, some of them doubled over, hands on knees, looking out at the sticks, gloves, helmets that were being tossed around in celebration. Having endured nearly eight quarters of play, the No. 1 Dragons finally cast off No. 2 Lincoln-Sudbury, 8-7, with 17 seconds to play in overtime No. 4.

Clearly dazed by the nerve-racking experience, a few moments after it ended, Duxbury head coach Chris Sweet took stock of what just unfolded.

It all seemed like a dream – more of the surrealist kind.

“Did we really play four overtimes?” Sweet asked, although not rhetorically. “You really kind of lose track of time in the middle of it.”

Speaking of time, the game was originally slated to start at 5:30 p.m., but its start was delayed to nearly 6 p.m., the result of the string of super-charged thunderstorms that rolled through the Metro-West communities. The turf was saturated. The air hung heavy with humidity, with the occasional whiff of charbroiled hamburgers from the snack shack. Still, the later start time allowed more of the late-arriving revelers to arrive in time for faceoff, with many caught in the snarling traffic that encircled Boston for the Thursday evening commute.

The tone was set from the opening faceoff. After Duxbury won the draw, Sweet decided to take a timeout 15 seconds in – an indication of how important each possession would be between two equally talented sides. No one was in a hurry. This was one for savoring.

The crowd was as big as you’d ever see for a regular-season varsity lacrosse game in the Commonwealth. Fans spilled out of the near-capacity bleachers and around the fencing. By halftime, L-S held a 4-3 lead. The last four minutes or so of the second quarter were played in a torrential downpour. Nobody left.

When the second half passed without resolution, they still remained. Duxbury’s junior varsity team stood in one corner of the far-side bleachers – all players still dressed in uniform, soaking wet. One player held a green flag with a white calligraphy-styled “D” on it. At one point during the fourth quarter, a couple Duxbury students procured the flag and took it on a tour around the track, passing in front of the L-S fan section, drawing jeers.

As the succession of overtimes wore on, there seemed no end. Man-up advantages came and went with the same result. Warriors goaltender Dario Morando and Duxbury counterpart Nick Marrocco had an answer for everything hurled their way.

By the middle of the third extra session, the pair of students administering the official score book for L-S had resigned themselves to inevitability.

“There’s no space for all these overtime periods in the book,” one said.

He paused for a minute and pondered when the game might ever end, adding, “Of course, I have two tests tomorrow to study for tonight. I don’t think that’s going to happen now.”

Soon thereafter, about midway through the third overtime, there was a momentary calm that fell over the huddled masses for a moment. After all the near misses, the fever pitch faded to a sigh.

“Why’d everybody get so quiet?” one L-S student during a pin-drop moment, drawing laughs from his peers.

On the field, exhaustion took its toll as well. Play slowed to begin the fourth overtime, and a few errant passes ended possessions for either side.

Tyler Powers scored the game-winner when the game appeared to be heading to a fifth extra frame. Seventeen seconds locked in on the scoreboard as his teammates ran to greet him.

“It’s one-hundred percent mental,” Powers said of combating weary legs, “not doing stupid things, not throwing passes away, not taking bad shots. And then, just taking the ball to the hoop.”

Although suffering a tough defeat, L-S head coach Brian Vona, himself a former goalkeeper, reveled in the clinic he’d just witnessed between the pipes.

“Wasn’t that awesome?” he beamed. He then broke off to gain the attention of the nearby athletic trainer to attend to Duxbury’s C.J. LoConte, who was splayed out on the turf, merely spent.

Yet, there’s no rest for the Dragons yet. They are scheduled to be back in action less than 24 hours later with another road game against Quincy.

The closest they’d come to relishing Thursday’s win came with the chocolate truffle coated wafers the Dragons manager had prepared for the postgame – a tradition in Duxbury’s program, passing out assorted sweets that is.

“Well, if we didn’t have a game tomorrow, I’d have to think about that,” Sweet said of his team’s recovery. “People talk about our schedule, the grind we put these guys through. There’ve been in some tough ones, but these guys are used to it. We play back-to-back games out-of-state. You’ve just got to be ready.”

Let’s do it again sometime soon.

SUDBURY, Mass. – Tyler Powers had just scored the game-winning goal in an epic quadruple overtime game between the Nos. 1 and 2 ranked lacrosse teams in Massachusetts.

So how did he plan to celebrate?

“I’ve got a lot of homework to do,” Powers said. “Other than that, I don’t know.”

After a rain-delayed start, the struggle between No. 1 Duxbury and No. 2 Lincoln-Sudbury spanned about three-hours’ time and nearly the full span of four, complete overtime periods. And yet, after all the expended time and energy, it remained apparent that the difference between Thursday’s competitors was a futile exercise akin to splitting hairs. The highly anticipated matchup between the long-standing MIAA Division 1 powers was worth every minute, and every raindrop, which — at times — fell in torrents.

But it was Powers, a junior attackman, who finally broke the defensive stalemate as a fifth extra session loomed. Just 17 seconds remained in the fourth overtime, when fellow junior Brendan Burke found the cutting Powers for the game-winner. After more than 63 minutes of elapsed play, Duxbury emerged with an 8-7 victory.

“C.J. [LoConte] set a pick for Brendan [Burke], Brendan then found me, hit me in stride,” Powers said. “I got by my defenseman and put it by the goalie like our coaches told us.”

Not much did pass between the goaltenders – Duxbury’s Nick Marrocco and the Warriors’ Dario Morando – who were brilliant. The standout saves were too numerous to tally, with both parties seemingly one-upping the other on each stop.

L-S head coach Brian Vona, a goaltender in his own day, called Marrocco “the player of the game” — a tall compliment paid in a game rife with superb defense.

“Nick’s about as tough as they get mentally, physically,” Duxbury head coach Chris Sweet said. “He’s fearless and it showed tonight. He was spectacular along with our three defenders Marshall [McCarthy], [Jon] Hurvitz and George Ward.”

For the scant offense that was available to either side, both teams received contributions beyond their usual cast of starters. Sweet called Burke’s three-goal effort the junior’s “game of his career.”

Meanwhile for the Warriors, who suffered their first defeat of the season and were playing without top offensive threats Dan Delaney and Henry Guild due to injury, junior Greg Roder helped fill the void with a two-goal game. Chris Giorgio was also a factor, scoring a goal and adding two assists.

Giorgio’s greatest thrill was for not, however. L-S started the third overtime period with a man-up advantage. After cycling the ball around, Giorgio had Marrocco beat with a quick rip to the left-hand post. Giorgio’s shot kicked up the slack on the side of net – for a moment, drawing the Warriors’ faithful into a frenzy. The shot landed wide of the post, however, and Marrocco coolly collected the ball and cleared to end the threat.

IN AND OUT
Both teams have dealt with recent injury woes. And while L-S (11-1) was without a couple of its top offensive options Thursday, Duxbury (12-4) is on the mend.

The Dragons rotation was bolstered by Trevor O’Brien and Jack and Shayne Sullivan returning to the mix. And although Sweet has had to mix and match his attack during the last couple weeks, it’s also been a trial by fire for his group.

“We’ve had our share of injuries, but what it’s done is that it’s built a lot of depth for us,” Sweet said. “That can be a good thing. We saw a lot of kids step up today who you probably haven’t heard much from.”

Now, the task is building chemistry among the replenished ranks.

“Our team has a lot of depth,” Powers said. “We have a bunch of middies. They’ve been working hard. The kids that took their place have been playing great, doing what they can to help the team.”

DEFENSE RULES THE DAY
Aside from the goaltending, the true stars of the duel were the poles. And, at times, they weren’t limited to the defensive half.

Hardly a play went into the L-S half field without Notre Dame-bound long-stick John Sexton throwing his height around. In addition, the rangy junior also chipped in on the Warriors’ man-up situations. Also, in close defense, Matt Barker was a revelation for the Warriors, with his crafty stick-check during a key Duxbury possession in the third overtime as a highlight.

Likewise, the Dragons’ vaunted defense came to play.

Highly-touted, Fairfield-bound pole Jay Walsh was a ground ball hound, including a couple pick-ups on faceoffs during the overtime periods.

Marshall McCarthy was a force, scooping up key ground balls in the defensive half, while also stepping into the breakout with an assist. It was a pivotal performance from a player who (can you believe this?) didn't play in his sophomore season and is in his first year as a defender.

“I think he could play Division 1 lacrosse right now,” Marrocco laughed about McCarthy, who was also ESPN Boston’s MIAA football Defensive Player of the Year.

MEDFIELD, Mass. -- While his teammates searched for the necessary adjustments on defense and any sort of continuity on offense, Duxbury goalie Nick Marrocco produced a second consecutive game-winning performance in the cage.

The junior Georgetown commit sparkled in the first half, making seven of his 11 saves to help lead top-ranked Duxbury to a 5-4 victory over No. 7 Medfield Thursday night at Medfield High School.

Marrocco made several saves that fell into the ridiculous category while giving the Dragons (9-4) every possible opportunity climb out of a 3-2, first-half deficit.

"Nick stood on his head," praised Duxbury coach Chris Sweet. "If not for Nick, that would have been a loss for us. He kept us in it in the first half until our guys kind of woke up."

Medfield (10-2) jumped out first as Matt Crowell snapped in an unassisted tally on the game's first possession. Brendan Burke pulled the Dragons even at the 7:01 mark, but the Warriors won the ensuing faceoff and retook the lead on a goal from Matt Ruzzo.

Wes Quinzani tied it up again with an athletic play that saw him split through a pair of defenders, then crash through two more as he got off his shot. Medfield would another in the second quarter as Jack Isaf converted a feed from Matt Cahill for a 3-2 lead they would carry into the half.

The third quarter belonged to Duxbury, who used smart, lengthy possessions to keep the ball away from the Warriors while generating quality scoring opportunities for itself. Bobby O'Brien made it a 3-3 game with a shot through traffic that may have gone off a defenseman, then C.J. LoConte gave the Dragons their first lead on a sidewinder, and Matt Sharpe capped the 3-0 run off a feed from LoConte with nine seconds left in the frame.

"In the first half we were trying to get as many possessions and we could but ended up playing a lot of defense so it was kind of just knocking it down," Marrocco said. "We communicated a lot, that was huge, my defense helps me out with that. Trying to figure out the slides in the first half it was a little tough but we got it going in the second half and let the offense do the job."

And on the slide package, Marrocco said, "They were dodging from the top and basically feeding the middle as we slid, before the two was coming so we just adjusted to that and got the two really early so we had that backup guy."

Medfield was kept scoreless until Andrew Melvin got one through with just one second left to play in the game.

"Unfortunately it was a tale of two different halves," lamented Medfield coach John Isaf. "Part of it is, we've got to make smart decisions. We've got to get the ball out quicker. When we have a ground ball or a save, we've got get the ball out quicker. We're not breaking out fast enough, we're not getting in our lanes and we've got to get the ball out faster. Part of that is when we let somebody set up a ride, its tougher to clear."

WALSH RETURN PROVIDES A BOOST

Over past couple of weeks, as many as seven Dragons have been sidelined with various injuries but the team finally had some good news with the return of Fairfield-bound defender Jay Walsh to the lineup. Walsh has missed the last two weeks with a hyperextended elbow.

"We needed Jay back," Sweet said. "The poor kid was exhausted by the end there but he's a trooper. He's still got a bad wing but he played great. We really needed him because they've got two or three guys in the midfield that can bring it and Jay was a big help there."

The senior captain stepped right back into his spot alongside Marshall McCarthy and John Hurvitz and the unit was able to make the necessary adjustments to help the defense react to what Medfield was doing.

"We knew their big guys, they have a lot of great shooters so we were trying to stay with them and then we realized once went, we had to recover," Walsh said of the adjustments on defense. "That's where they were beating us, on that backside guy. Once we got that figured out and had a middie slough in, we've been having that problem all year, just the middies sloughing back, and I think we're starting to figure that out now and it showed in the second quarter and second half."

Still on the Dragons injured list are: Trevor and Shayne O'Brien, Jack and Shane Sullivan, Tanner Williams and Brendan Fitzgerald. The majority of those players are offensive guys, and getting them healthy will go a long way toward curing a three-game stretch over which the team has managed just three, eight and five goals respectively.

"We scored just enough. We've been a little stale on offense. We have a couple of middies out that are going to help us when they get healthy and I think were going to get them back soon. The good news is that the guys who have stepped in for them have played pretty well. We'll work on it."

COMPLETE GAME SEARCH CONTINUES

Medfield had ample opportunity to put an end to the buzz already generating for next Thursday's showdown between Duxbury and Lincoln-Sudbury, and if not for Marrocco's effort, we could have been discussing a Warrior victory.

Instead, it was a tale of two halves for Medfield, who seemed to have things in hand over the first 24 minutes but could not maintain it through the end.

"We still haven't put a complete game together," Isaf said. "We played a lousy first half against Foothill and played a great second half. We played a pretty decent first half against Dover-Sherborn, didn't get it done in the second half. We played a good first half tonight, didn't get it done in the second half. We have to figure out how to get a complete game. Once we do, we'll be a tough out."

When asked what his team needed to do to get that elusive complete-game performance, Isaf said, "Keeping your intensity up, keeping your focus, not letting a momentum play change your confidence. Focus, intensity and when another team goes on a run and throws a punch, you've got to get up and punch back. We've done that most of the season. The only teams we haven't have been against two defending state champions."

SUDBURY, Mass. -- It was a pitcher’s duel from beginning to end, and ultimately a clutch walk-off single from Lincoln-Sudbury senior Brian Carroll was the difference, giving the Warriors (6-4) a 2-1 win over third-ranked BC High (7-2).

Junior Owen Bautze, in his second start of the year, got the win for Lincoln-Sudbury, scattering three hits in seven innings pitched. BC High’s one run came by way of a home run by leadoff hitter Dan Dougherty (2-for-4) in the third inning.

“BC High--they can always swing the bats. Last year they put a quick eight runs on us. [Owen] pitched phenomenal for seven straight innings," Carroll said in praise of his teammate. "He came out against a very good team and performed well."

Lincoln-Sudbury coach Kirk Fredericks echoed his senior’s remarks on Bautze, pointing out Bautze’s gradual improvement in terms of his mentality on the mound.

“It’s all about getting better," Fredericks said. "Earlier in the year if he gives up a home run it would have affected him for the next couple batters. Here he gives up a home run, he comes right back, and he does a nice job."

Following Dougherty’s home run in the third, the Warriors come back in the fourth with a run of their own. Sid Warrenbrand hit a single up the middle to score Ian Kinney and tie the ballgame at one.

“We really worked on two strike hitting, it showed up today," Carroll said. "And working on keeping the ball on the ground, hopefully to get it through holes."

From there on out, Bautze and BC High starter Dan Cobban dominated the tempo of the game. Cobban avoided any jams until the bottom of the seventh inning, when Shane Sefton started off the inning with a base hit. Bautze bunted to the first base side soon after, and Cobban bobbled the ball before he could get a decent toss over to first.

With runners on first and second and no outs, Fredericks made the decision to pinch-hit Kieran Pathak. The move paid dividends, as Pathak’s sacrifice bunt advanced the runners to second and third.

The next batter, Dylan DeFlorio, was intentionally walked—bringing up Carroll with the bases loaded. Carroll wasted no time, hitting a line drive up the middle on the first pitch he saw to win the game.

“The whole game I was seeing fastballs, so I just wanted to be aggressive at the plate and I didn’t want to get down in the count," Carroll said. "First ball I saw, I took a hack at it, and got up lucky for a single."

Fredericks added, on Carroll’s final at-bat, “That’s our best player, they put our best player at the plate. So if we’re going to beat BC High, it’s going to be with our best player. He gave us the best shot, got into one and got a nice pitch to hit.”

Fredericks admitted he was skeptical on how his team would come to perform, saying he kicked them off the field during pre-game for a lack of effort.

“There are some games we’ve executed and some games we haven’t," he said. "Today we had to kick them off the field. They came with a horrible attitude, a horrible effort [before the game]. On their own, wherever they went for a half an hour, they found it, figured it out, and came and matched BC High,” the coach said after the game."

He also sent out a challenge to his team after the game. A relatively young, but talented squad, Lincoln-Sudbury has taken its’ lumps this year, and Fredericks wants to see a more consistent effort from his squad from here on out.

“We worry about trying to get better, I tell them all the time that it’s not about the result, it’s about trying to get better. We got better today, but, we got better against Westford and then we laid an egg the next day against [Acton-Boxborough],” Fredericks said.

"So we’ll see how we do against Waltham, will we be two steps forward one step back again? Or will we take two more steps?”

SUDBURY, Mass. - For a moment in the early minutes of the second quarter, Lincoln-Sudbury lacrosse fans would have been excused if they suddenly experienced flashbacks to the team's previous meeting against Acton-Boxborough.

On April 4, the Colonials came storming back after L-S had opened up a six-goal advantage, actually taking the lead late before the Warriors rallied to come back for a 12-11 victory.

Saturday, L-S came flying out of the gates once again and built a 6-0 lead with 3:03 left in the first quarter. Thomas Cotter scored twice in a row, followed by a dodge-and-rip by Scott Rogers that cut the deficit to 6-3 with 5:36 left in the second.

This time around, however, there would be no comeback as the second-ranked Warriors reeled off seven of the next eight and went on to finish with a 19-8 victory over No. 5 A-B at Myers field.

"No one was worried," said L-S midfielder Greg Roder, one of three players to score four goals in the game. "We knew what happened last time and how it was a close game and we knew we were going to take it right back from them."

Take it right back L-S (9-0) did, as Henry Guild (four goals, three assists), Jordan Dow (two goals, three assists) and Roder all scored to close out the first half with a 9-3 lead.

Guild and A-B's (10-2) Hunter Arnold traded goals to open the third, then L-S stuck three in a row - two from Roder around one from Dan Delaney (four goals, two assists) - to push the advantage to 13-4.

Cotter completed his hat trick to temporarily stop the bleeding, but the Warriors responded with scores from Dow, Guild and Delaney to push the lead back into double digits (16-5), before both coaches mutually agreed to start emptying the benches.

"I think they are a very good team," L-S coach Brian Vona said of Acton-Boxborough. "I think they are a well coached team but I think our kids were just ready, they were ready for tonight. They’ve been practicing hard. I know its age old stuff, but they’ve been practicing hard, they’re working hard, and they’re playing together."

SUDBURY, Mass. – A 16-3 win by Lincoln-Sudbury boys’ lacrosse over North Andover in the final of Saturday’s Coaches Challenge Cup can only tell you so much about this Warriors team.

The enduring image – outside of the game’s score as the scoreboard hit triple zeroes – came about a half hour following the win. On a nearby practice field, a group of Warriors players were helping to the clear the field for Monday’s practice. Youth soccer games left a set of nets on the field. As part of a challenge issued during Friday’s team practice by head coach Brian Vona, the losers of a drill were going to be forced to perform odd jobs on Saturday, including the clean up of the practice field and clearing the 8-yard by 8-foot frames. The nets dwarfed the team members scurrying underneath them, like a colony of ants moving leaves on the forest floor.

“I feel like we’re building,” Vona said following the team’s Cup win, the progam’s second. “We’re not where we’re going to be in June, not even close. We have a long way to go. We’re slowly improving on some things that, maybe things that you might not see, but we’re improving on things that we had to work on.

“So I feel good, knowing that we’re progressing.”

That progress was set in motion two years ago when the Warriors’ seniors were sophomores. Many of them were pressed into immediate service that season, before they might have otherwise. due to a rash of (at times, freakish) injuries. One player was cut severely on a plate glass window at his church and missed time in 2011.

That chain of events gave a deep and talented class a running start while growing into one of the state’s Division 1 title favorites this season.

“I think a huge part of that is the confidence knowing that we’ve played together … almost all of our starters have played together since sophomore year,” said Henry Guild, a Yale commit who led the Warriors with a hat trick and six points on Saturday. “We’ve played in big games and we have confidence in knowing each other’s strengths and weaknesses.”

Vona maintains there’s room for improvement, even with the Warriors’ offense, which operates with the efficiency of a Swiss watch.

But with a slew of high Division 1 recruits on offense, including Dan Delaney, Matt Hall, Chris Giorgio, among others, there’s not much that can slow down L-S.

“When we possess the ball on offense,” Vona said, “we control our destiny.”

The Warriors have also taken care of business in their own end. There’s plenty of talent to be found among L-S’s poles, including Sam Chen, Eamon Hunter and John Sexton. And they’ve been able to keep it out of their own cage.

“The key thing is that we’re talking,” Hunter said. “You hear it on the bench, you hear it on the field. You hear it from Dario [Morando]. When we’re talking, we play more aggressively. We’ve motivated to grab the ball, turn it over to the offense and get them started.”

CONCORD, Mass. –- With seven players finding the back of the net on Wednesday, Lincoln-Sudbury (5-0) showed off one of the most balanced and productive efforts of the young 2013 season as they defeated Dover-Sherborn, 15-4.

No. 2 Lincoln-Sudbury, playing at full strength for one of the first times this season, used a 7-0 second quarter run to pull away from No. 13 D-S (5-1) in the first round of the 2013 Coaches Challenge Cup.

“It was just a team effort today,” L-S head coach Brian Vona said after the game.

L-S was led in scoring on the day by senior attack Jordan Dow, who netted four goals to go with one assist.

“When we get both the midfielders and attack going we can be a tough team to beat,” Dow said.

Middies Dan Delaney, Brendan McCartthy, Harlan Smart, and Henry Guild each scored two goals and Greg Roder added one for the victors.

“It is what we talked about,” Vona said. “We had a couple of kids trying to do it all and we just talked about sharing the ball and we did.”

Two-Way Middie: Fairfield-bound middie Chris Giorgio (2 Goals) scored the games opening goal, eight seconds into the first quarter, on an aggressive dodge off a John Sexton face-off win.

As good as Giorgio looked on the offensive end it was work on the defensive end of the field that drew praise from his head coach.

“He is a very good player,” Vona said. “We did not get him into to many offensive sets today because we had him coming in on the wings so much and I did not want to gas him. He took the ball away from kids with the short stick a few times. The kid has worked really hard for us so I am proud for him.”

Opening Quarter: It may not have been how Vona drew up the start of the game but D-S came out moving and possessing the ball as they lead 2-1 after the first quarter.

“In the first quarter we were just trying to do too much,” Vona said. “Every one person was trying to do it themselves but when we sit back and trust each other and move the ball I think we are a good team.”

D-S, playing without senior attack Brandon Jaeger, who was out with an injury, got a strong opening effort from attackmen Grant Gregory (1G) and Matt Davies (1G, 1A).

From the second quarter on it would be all L-S as they used their depth, balance and strong two-way play to control the game.

“We settled down in the second quarter, got the quality dodges we wanted and executed,” Dow added.

L-S will take-on long-time neighboring rival Concord-Carlisle in the 4 p.m. semifinal game of the Coaches Challenge Cup on Thursday at Andover High School.

North Andover Advances: North Andover had finished in last place (Eighth) during the past two years of the Coaches Challenge Cup. On Wednesday they took a big step toward changing recent history as they defeated Division 2 power Hingham, 7-6, in the day’s closest contest.

After an opening half that saw both teams score only one goal each North Andover coach Ryan Connolly knew that his team had to start taking advantage of opportunities if they were going to prevail.

“We knew they would come around as long as we could start burying our opportunities,” Connolly said. “We were a little stagnant and we did not come out of the gates flying like I was expecting the guys too. Then we really started turning it on.”

Both teams came out of the second half more aggressive as Hingham middie Caleb Broadie (3 G) and North Andover attack Nick Pino (4G) matched each other goal for goal in a battle of two of the top talents in Eastern Massachusetts lacrosse.

Trailing 6-4 with 7:26 remaining in the game North Andover received three unanswered goals from attack Dante Querci (2G) and Pino to give them the final lead of the game.

The North Andover defensive unit of goalie Cosmo Capabianco and defenders Colin Cronin, Tom O’Mara, and Joe Samuelman all played very well down the stretch for NA in the win.

North Andover will take on Wellesley at 2 p.m. in the other semifinal match-up on Thursday at Andover High School.

We updated our statewide MIAA Top 25 baseball poll this afternoon. To view it, CLICK HERE.

The next poll update will be Friday, April 19.

A few notes and observations about this week's poll:

BC High back on top: With its thrilling 2-1 victory over Malden Catholic under the lights Monday, BC High moves into the No. 1 spot for the first time since last season, when they were ranked No. 1 in the preseason. Once again, the Eagles make a clean sweep of the top spots, with St. John's Prep (2) and Malden Catholic (3) sweeping the top three positions. Preseason No. 1 Xaverian, off to a 1-3 start with a brutal schedule, falls back 10 spots to No. 11.

Here come the Raiders: One of the biggest statements of the early season has been Wellesley, which delivered a surprise 13-3 thrashing of Xaverian on April 6. For that, the Raiders make their season debut at No. 10. Overall, the Bay State Conference is off to a terrific start, with Walpole (4) and Newton North (6) also represented in the Top 10.

A few new debuts: Hudson storms into the poll for the first time since last season, at No. 17, following season-opening wins over D1 contenders St. Peter-Marian and Algonquin. The Hawks, along with SWCL mainstays Auburn (8) and Northbridge (20) make it three teams represented in the poll from the competitive Division 2 Central bracket.

Elsewhere, Malden (21), Lincoln-Sudbury (23), Beverly (24) and Barnstable (25) all make season debuts this week.

Here's how the poll breaks down by league affiliation:

Catholic Conference - 4
Bay State - 3
Northeastern - 3
Southern Worcester County - 2
Valley League - 2
Atlantic Coast - 1
Central Mass. Conference - 1
Dual County - 1
Greater Boston - 1
Merrimack Valley - 1
Mid-Wach A - 1
Mid-Wach B - 1
Middlesex - 1
Old Colony - 1
South Coast - 1
Valley Wheel - 1

Defending Division 1 state champion Duxbury opens another season as the No. 1 team in our initial MIAA boys' lacrosse poll Top 25 poll.

The Dragons, despite losing 10 Division 1 recruits off of last year's team, are deep again and looking for their 10th state title in the last 11 years. They will surely face a stiff challenge from Lincoln-Sudbury, which checks in at No. 2, and boasts a host of Division 1 talent in its own right. Last year's Division 1 state runner-up Needham begins the season at No. 3

CROWDED IN D2
Once again, the Division 2 race should be one to watch. Defending state champion Concord-Carlisle gained the highest ranking by a D2 team, peaking at No. 5. But they'll field challenges throughout the year from a bunch of D2 teams huddled in the Top 10. Hingham claims the No. 6 spot, followed by Catholic Memorial (No. 7), Reading (No. 9) and Medfield (No. 10).

The Central Mass competition in the division will also be tightly contested with defending sectional champion Algonquin (No. 16), but look for Grafton to make a push, starting out at No. 18, and No. 23 St. John's (Shrewsbury) is always a force.

There is one lone Division 3 representative in our initial poll, with defending state champion Dover-Sherborn appearing at No. 13.

WESTFORD, Mass. -- Westford Academy's girls' lacrosse strolled about field with the confidence and swagger of a team who had been there before.

Sliding the exact right moment on defense and always finding perfect gaps on offense all well joking comfortably during breaks in play one would never suspect the Grey Ghosts (4-0, 2-0) were grabbing the program's first ever victory against Dual County League (Large) rival and defending division champ Lincoln-Sudbury.

Driven with five goals and an assist from senior Bailey Mongillo, host WA led for all but the first 53 seconds as it cruised to a 14-9 victory over the Warriors (1-2, 1-1).

“We are taught to be the boss,” said Ghosts coach Julie Olivier. “We do not worry about what other teams do and execute our plan. They are confident we know what we are talking about and they listen.”

Junior attack Jenna Klinka added four goals and an assist for the Ghosts, while opponent Eliza Guild netted three goals and assisted a pair.

Westford jumped out to an early 2-0 lead at 23:37 after winning the first two draws. Junior Stacey Shackleton bounced in a free position effort at 24:07, while Mongillo broke in from behind the crease to hook in the second score.

“I just like to draw the defender and can use the crease to my advantage as a barrier,” said Mongillo. “Coach has us work on our bread and butter shots or our strength shots. Every girl on the team has a certain thing they like to do.”

L-S managed to draw within a score four different occasions, but never could pull even.

Guild ripped a free position under the keeper's net then seconds later won and scored off the draw to cut their deficit to 9-8 with 18:12 remaining.

“They were all cutting to the net at once,” said L-S coach Deb DeJesus. “All the defenders come in so we can not get the ball in to who we want to get it to. It is a matter of just getting used to playing with one another.”

Westford outscored the Warriors five to one to finish, including the next four goals.

Shackleton went center net on a free position score to initialize the streak with 15:36 left. Westford junior Cathryn Sennott ducked a defender and hit senior Taylor Freud in motion for the 13-8 advantage at 6:28.

Defensive Prowess: Westford dominated the game despite losing the battle for draws 13 to 11. The difference for the Grey Ghosts was their man-to-man defense and its to ability to effectively collapse both in the open field and off a Warriors free position.

Seven saves from vocal senior keeper Erin Shaughnessey aided the cause.

“We have been preparing for different flavors of games and when to change it up,” said Olivier. “The girls have been working hard on when to put the pressure on and when to pull it back.”

Tough Starts, Different Results: Both teams opened with difficult schedules.

WA began its season by defeating Division 2 favorite Duxbury (2-1) 14-12, while L-S dropped a 9-8 decision to Division 1 South runner-up Needham (3-0) on Saturday.

“A lot of write-ups on teams like Notre Dame (Hingham) and Westwood,” said Olivier. “There is no one here heavy on the radar. I am OK with that.”

“We have the athletic ability to compete with them and it is just a matter of practicing,” added DeJesus.

Attackmen:
Tyler Bogart, Soph., Catholic Memorial
Jordan Dow, Sr., Lincoln-Sudbury
Jay Drapeau, Jr., Westford Academy
Brandon Jaeger, Sr., Dover-Sherborn
C.J. LoConte, Sr., Duxbury
Andrew Melvin, Sr., Medfield
Nick Menzel, Jr., Archbishop Williams
Nico Panepinto, Sr., Needham
Robbie Pisano, Sr., Needham
Tyler Reilly, Sr., Grafton
Andrew Smiley, Jr., St. John’s (Shrewsbury)

Midfielders:
Kevin Bletzer, Jr., Catholic Memorial
Will Blumenberg, Soph., Concord-Carlisle
Caleb Brodie, Jr., Hingham
Alec Brown, Sr., Wakefield
Tucker Ciessau, Sr., Scituate
Dan Delaney, Sr., Lincoln-Sudbury
Henry Guild, Sr., Lincoln-Sudbury
Carson Hart, Sr., Wayland
Davis Kraft, Sr., Algonquin
Matt LaCroix, Sr., Westfield
Drew O’Connell, Jr., St. John’s Prep
Mikey Panepinto, Jr., Needham
Kieran Presley, Sr., Amherst
Bryan Rotartori, Sr., Grafton
Jack Wheeler, Jr., Xaverian

Long-stick Midfielders:
Nick Brozowski, Jr., Concord-Carlisle
Mike Elcock, Jr., Needham
D.J. George, Sr., Arlington Catholic
John Sexton, Jr., Lincoln-Sudbury

Defensemen:
Evan Boynton, Sr., Concord-Carlisle
Tim Gillis, Soph., Cohasset
Brian Uva, Sr., St. John’s Prep
Luc Valenza, Sr., Foxborough
Jay Walsh, Sr., Duxbury
Tyler Weeks, Sr., Andover
Ian Yanulis, Sr., BC High

Goaltender:
Andrew Blood, Jr., Walpole
Matt Comerford, Sr., Reading
Ryan Goodall, Sr., Dover-Sherborn
Nick Marrocco, Jr., Duxbury
Giles Ober, Sr., Algonquin
Jake Reynolds, Jr., Scituate
D.J. Smith, Sr., Billerica
Robert Treiber, Jr., Medfield
Tighe Van Lenten, Sr., Masconomet

BILLERICA, Mass. — Cam Owens sparked a monstrous second period for No. 3 Wilmington as the Wildcats iced No. 2 Lincoln-Sudbury, 6-0, in a Division 2 North semifinal.

Wilmington (19-3-2) was firing on all cylinders during the second period by blasting four goals past Lincoln-Sudbury goalie Erik Kessler (28 saves). Meanwhile, at the other end of the rink, Drew Foley was not tested nearly as much as Kessler, but Foley did his job turning away the 14 shots he faced to earn the shutout.

Wilmington’s Anthony Castellano started the scoring at the 9:40 mark of the first period. Castellano fired a shot through traffic that Kessler never saw.

Owens opened up the second period by rifling a wrist shot past Kessler only 12 seconds into the period. That goal appeared to give Wilmington a big jump in its step.

“I put a little head fake on [the defense] and gave them the little shake and bake,” Owens said. “I went wide with it, and I shot it far side under the goalies blocker. After that, the floodgates just opened.”

Luke Foley, Billy Falter, and Dylan DiNatale played follow the leader behind Owens as they also added second-period goals to blow the game wide open.

In the third, Jake Rogers added the final goal of the game, becoming the sixth different Wildcat to find twine.

“We got a balanced scoring attack tonight, and those are the kind of contributions we need,” Wilmington head coach Steve Scanlon said.

The defending champs face Danvers their next time out for the Division 2 North final.

DANVERS 5, CONCORD-CARLISLE 3
In the earlier game, No. 8 Danvers stayed on a roll by knocking off No. 12 Concord-Carlisle, 5-3.

A.J. Cuoto stayed hot scoring two goals after recording hat tricks in the Falcons (13-6-4) previous two-playoff games.

“A.J. [Couto] has been playing well as we have seen the past few games,” Danvers head coach Kevin Brown said. “He is playing hard and mixing it up, so I am happy with A.J.”

Couto’s line was on fire scoring four-of-the-five goals that the Falcons scored as Rob Buchanan and Joe Strangie both lit the lamp too.

“Sometimes it just clicks at a certain point of the season, and we have made several different line changes throughout the season,” Brown said.

Danvers wasted little time getting on the board as Buchanan scored only 39 seconds into the game. Strangie then followed with a power-play goal by screening the goalie and deflecting the puck past Concord-Carlisle goalie Ranger Beguelin (24 saves).

“We have to set a screen because most goalies will stop the puck if they see it,” Brown said. “We like the guys around the crease, and Joe [Strangie] did a good job there.”

Couto then followed with his own power play goal by connecting with the puck in mid-air to redirect a wide shot into the goal.

“I just saw the shot coming from the point, so I stuck my stick out to try and make contact,” Couto said. “I got my stick on the puck, and it just happened to go into the net.”

Nick McCormack got the Patriots on the board before the period ended by tapping home a rebound late in the first.

Seamus Vahey brought the Patriots within a goal in the second period, but Couto and Adam Merry countered sending Danvers into the third up, 5-2.

In the third, Matt Robinson added a goal for Concord-Carlisle, but Danvers goalie Alex Taylor (16 saves) held the fort down to preserve the win.

BILLERICA, Mass. -– After losing in the first round of the 2012 MIAA state tournament Billerica senior leaders Brittany Lomanno and Danielle Nickerson knew that this year had to be different.

“Having eight returners back this year, we all knew the heartbreak we had when lost to a lower seed in the first round last year,” Nickerson said after the game.

No. 2 Billerica (19-2) took one step closer to their ultimate goal as they defeated a tough No. 15 Lincoln-Sudbury (11-10) team 66-49 on Wednesday night in the First Round of the Division 1 North sectional.

“Every day at practice we are focused,” Lomanno added. “We are keying on our defense, which has been really good for us this year. We made huge stops, got the rebounds, got the ball up in transition and were patient on offense.”

Billerica came out of the gate poised as they executed possessions and moved the ball efficiently to take a 21-10 lead after one quarter of play.

L-S would not back down, however, as they kept the game within reach, trailing 35-30 at the half and narrowing the gap early in the third quarter.

Lomanno would steady the game for Billerica, as they battled through a third quarter rut that saw L-S draw to within two points at 39-37 with 3:15 remaining in the quarter.

“I tried to keep the poised out there tonight and run the offense effectively,” Lomanno said.

Billerica went on an 8-2 run to end the third quarter and lead 47-39 heading to the fourth.

“We needed to be more patient on offense,” Billerica head coach Chris Doneski said. “We are pretty good at running the flex offense and by the third or fourth quarter we start to grind teams down but we have to get there. I talked to them about just being patient and I think we did that.”

The fourth quarter belonged to Billerica, as they outscored L-S 19-10 the final eight minutes of play. Nickerson and Lomanno would both nail shot clock-beating 3-pointers down the stretch to seal the victory and help Billerica advance to the Division 1 North quarterfinals.

Nickerson scored a game-high 24 points and grabbed seven rebounds while Lomanno added 13 points to go with four assists.

“Brittany really controls the game for us,” Doneski said. “Nellie really does a great job underneath the basket. She is able to step out and hit some shots if she needs to and when we really needed baskets in the game the ball seemed to find her.”

Senior center Joslyn King and senior guard Kayla Leverone also contributed to the strong Billerica defensive effort as both seniors stepped up in the fourth quarter when the game was on the line.

“We knew they were going to be tough,” Doneski said. “They have a lot of girls who are athletic and they were an extremely difficult team to play against.”

Ashley Lutz led L-S on the night as the Lafayette-bound senior scored 14 points, pulled down eight rebounds and blocked two shots.

Billerica will take on No. 7 Masconomet seed, which defeated No. 10 seed Cambridge, 64-62 on Wednesday night. Game time is scheduled for 4 p.m. at Billerica Memorial High School.

All-Purpose Effort: Billerica junior guard Shannon Hayes scored 10 of 14 points in the first half and also drew the challenging task of guarding Ashley Lutz.

“Shannon is always a presence out there for us,” Lomanno said of Hayes. “She hit a few shots but was obviously a big defensive presence out their for us tonight.”

The 5-foot-6 Hayes followed the 6-foot-1 Lutz around the court and gave her a different, smaller look on the perimeter and in the post.

Role Players: Billerica’s bench has improved drastically over the course of the season. The trust that Doneski has in them is evident as they gave the team a lift during the middle quarters of the game.

Billerica received strong efforts from sophomore forward Lilly Coppinger, junior forward Alex Napoli, and sophomore guards Caroline Gillis and Lexie Mattar.

“That was our big question this year, our depth,” Nickerson said. “They proved it they we are deep. We have trust in them as they have trust in us.”

Bright Future: Despite losing Ashley Lutz to graduation, L-S returns most of its core unit, led by a strong sophomore class.

L-S returns four of their five starters as sophomore point guard Kristen Ngan (four steals), sophomore center Olivia Canning (five rebounds), junior guard Jody Henkels (six points) and sophomore guard Emma Lutz (12 points) lead a group of 10 returnees next season for head coach Liza Feldman.