MORGANTOWN — In a 2023 state title matchup rematch, the Morgantown boys’ lacrosse team welcomed George Washington to Pony Lewis field for a battle of two of the top teams in the WVSLA.
The defending state champion Mohigans (12-2) continued their road to back-to-back titles with an important 6-4 victory over Patriots (10-2) on a perfect Friday night behind some timely defense and impressive offense.
“It’s always huge to get a win against a team like that (GW),” MHS head coach Jeremy Bennett said. “We will take the momentum but we always have to quickly turn the page to get ready for what’s next.”
Morgantown opened the scoring less than 90 seconds into the contest as junior midfielder Joseph Mathews buried a shot into the net to break the ice and give MHS a 1-0 lead.
It didn’t take GW long to respond though, as senior Luke Jarrett equalized just over a minute later.
After an early goal came from each team, the pace of the game slowed slightly with both offenses patiently working the ball around the field.
It wasn’t until the 2:45 mark that MHS took a 2-1 lead as junior Nathan Lindsay cleaned up a goal after the GW keeper fumbled the ball coming out of the crease.
Then, with 1:20 to go in the opening quarter, Mathews added his second goal from a nice assist by junior Aydan Shepard, who made a nice move on his defender to free up space and help the Mohigans go ahead 3-1 after the first quarter.
Neither side scored for the entirety of the second quarter until the Patriots found a goal with 20 seconds until halftime as Jarrett added his second of the game to cut the lead in half 3-2 into the locker room.
“We just told the guys to stick to the gameplan,” Bennett said of his message at halftime. “We were pretty solid defensively but had a few things to clean up. When playing at this level with a low-scoring game one minor mistake can do you in. We just wanted to make sure we remained solid overall.”
Four minutes into the third quarter, Jarrett scored his third goal for GW and tied the game at three goals each.
After a stalemate over most of the third, Shepard would step up again for MHS and found the back of
the net after a well-played offensive set to give MHS a 4-3 lead.
“We have some incredible individual players that work hard and listen to what we tell them,” Bennett said. “Coachability goes a long way when your players are athletic.”
GW responded well once again and scored another goal with less than a minute to go as they had done just before halftime, this time coming from Liam Johnson with a laser into the top corner to tie the game at four.
Both sides opened the final 12 minutes careful not to allow the other to find an easy advantage. With 9:29 left in the game, MHS defenseman Charlie Peters scooped the ball after a strong defensive stand and went coast-to-coast for the go-ahead goal to give his team a 5-4 lead.
Wyatt Kozel added another goal at the 6:04 mark from a nice assist by Evan Burton to double the lead at 6-4, which would prove to be the final.
MHS earned a nice momentum win going into next week in which they will host crosstown rival University on Friday night.
University 16, Fairmont Senior 1
(Thursday)
MORGANTOWN — University senior attacker Colin Carey scored his 100th in the third quarter of the Hawks’ game Thursday night against Fairmont Senior. Carey led the Hawks to a dominant victory, 16-1, over the Polar Bears. University now has a 10-1 record on the season.
The Hawks’ seniors celebrated Senior Night with outstanding offensive play. Carey led the offense with six goals and one assist. Seniors Connor Montgomery, Aidan Murray and Noah Dower all contributed with multiple goals each.
The defense handled their business effectively as well. Senior Aidan Keeley and juniors Josh Brunner and Max Travis made it difficult for the Polar Bears to retain possession of the ball. The Polar Bears offense was held to only 14 attempted shots. Goalie James Robbins had 6 saves.
The Hawks travel to Buckhannon-Upshur on Tuesday, April 30, for a 7 p.m. game.
BASEBALL
Morgantown 10, Linsly 6
MORGANTOWN — The Morgantown baseball team defeated Linsly 10-6 on Dale Miller Field on Friday evening.
Eli Boggs led the Mohigans with three hits, a double, three stolen bases, an RBI and two runs scored. Dylan Travinski and Noah Fields had two hits and drove a run in each. Tristan Milik drove in two runs despite not getting a hit.
Hunter Dakan started on the mound and pitched six innings of two-run ball while striking out 10.
Preston 9, Liberty 5
KINGWOOD — Brady McNew had three hits including a double and two RBI and Bryson McNew drove in four runs as Preston defeated Liberty 9-5 on Friday in Kingwood.
Brady McNew started on the mound and allowed three runs on just two hits through five innings while striking out 11.
Slaton Manko and Robbie Lowe had two hits each for the Knights
