Raider boys produce a little lacrosse excitement

HHS knocked out of SCT in overtime

By: John E. Powers
   
   The effort had been there throughout the game and the lead seemed secure for the Hillsborough High School boys’ lacrosse team as time dwindled in Monday’s Somerset County Lacrosse Tournament quarterfinal match with Immaculata at Miller Lane Park in Bedminster.
   Hillsborough, which had as big as a three-goal lead in the fourth quarter, still owned a 7-5 edge with less than three minutes to play. But Immaculata, the No. 3 seed, scored twice to tie the game, and then netted the game-winner on senior attackman Lou Pizzigoni’s goal at 2:29 of sudden death overtime.
   "We couldn’t close it out, we couldn’t finish it," said one of Hillsborough’s tri-captains, senior attackman Brett Russo. "I think we thought we had the game won."
   Pizzigoni scored off a rebound after HHS goalie Dan Glod had made the first stop.
   "There was a lot of confusion in front of the net," Russo said. "They won the face-off, and then worked the ball around and then Danny made the save on a shot and it was a bit of a scramble and they put it in."
   Junior attackman Ryan Mahlstedt had two goals for the Raiders and Russo, Evan Drake, Keith and Steve Mitzak and Tommy Rose added the other scores. Glod, the junior goalie, had 24 saves. Hillsborough had 30 shots on goal, so the opportunities were there.
   "I thought we played very well, and I think we played well Saturday (against Montgomery) and last week in general," Raider head coach Vince Coviello said.
   Unlike the seventh-seeded Raiders, Immaculata didn’t have to go through a Saturday game. Coviello and Russo didn’t attribute the short rest as reasons for the team giving up the late goals Monday. The Raiders are now 2-9.
   "It was a great game, that’s all you can really say," Russo said.
   The Raiders reached the quarterfinal round with a 7-4 win over Montgomery in Montgomery. Mahlstedt and Russo each had two goals, while Glod registered 18 saves. Hillsborough, which lost to Montgomery earlier in the season, wiped out a 4-3 Cougar lead with four fourth-quarter goals.
   "We really shot a lot more on the cage than we did the first game," Coviello said. "We really went at the net this time. We really rallied and the kids didn’t quit."
   The busy week also included an 11-2 loss to a very good Moorestown team and the Raiders’ first win of the season, a 10-5 home triumph against Freehold Township. Hillsborough built a 7-2 halftime lead and sailed to their first win. Russo had a career-high five goals, while Greg Roberts had three.
   "Even in the loss to Moorestown I thought we played well," Coviello said.
   Coviello believes that the solid play will make for a very strong finish.
   "The kids have really held together, it’s not like we have the offensive players blaming the defensive players or vice versa," Coviello said. "We knew we were playing some very good teams. I think if you look at our scores, you can see that we were in most of them. When you’re not winning, you have to look at something positive and the kids have done that. We’ve stayed together and improved."
   The Raiders will get another shot at the Spartans, their biggest county rivals, in the annual home game under the lights on May 19. Other remaining action includes a home game vs. Watchung Hills (May 8) and road games at Old Bridge (May 13), Hunterdon Central (May 15) and Voorhees (May 20).