Tigers Lacrosse Ready to Start New Season

The wind still carried a little winter bite on Tuesday, but the day was clear and bright: perfect lacrosse weather for the last scrimmage before the regular season begins.

The Phoenixville Phantoms opened the scoring when Matt Randall potted a sharp angle shot 2:19 into the first quarter. That was the only point in the game the Tigers trailed, and it didn't last long. Less than a minute later, senior attacker Teddy Oleynick evened the score at the end of an offensive push that began with a Phoenixville penalty for failure to advance.

Senior attacker Cullen Scott gave the Tigers the lead with 7:27 left in the quarter after some hard work behind the Phantoms' net, capped off by a good overhand shot that made it just under the crossbar. A minute later, senior midfielder Matt Gregory whipped a laser from 20 yards out and beat the goalie for a 3-1 Tigers lead, which is how the first quarter ended.

Just over a minute into the second quarter, the scoring resumed. Junior midfielder Aaron Carmichael, who played a good, physical first quarter, fed classmate Jonathan O'Farrill who sent a quick bouncer past the goalie.

A minute and 15 seconds later, Oleynick netted his second of the game after the Tigers moved the ball quickly and cleanly all around the green, keeping Phoenixville's defense on their heels.

Another Marple Newtown goal was waved off, but the Tigers extended their lead with 7:17 left in the half. Gregory spotted Evan Aigeldinger all alone in front of the net and hit him with a perfect pass, and Aigeldinger didn't miss the opportunity for a slam dunk goal.

Down 6-1 and reeling under the Tigers' offensive pressure, Phoenixville head coach Joe Youngblood wisely called a time out to try and get his team back on track and interrupt Marple Newtown's momentum. Coming out of the time out, the Phantoms mounted a good offensive push, but were unable to get past a tight Tiger defense and sharp net-minding by sophomore goalie Ian Callahan.

Gregory was credited with his second goal of the game when Phoenixville's goalie mishandled a bouncing ball into his own net with 1:25 remaining in the half, which ended 7-1.

Phoenixville's Randall muscled his way out from behind Marple Newtown's goal and scored his second of the game 2:49 into the third quarter, just after the Tigers had finished serving a 30 second penalty for too many men on the field. Three minutes later, Gregory completed his hat trick by sending a blistering shot into the Phantoms' net from 25 yards out.

With 2:49 left, Oleynick connected on a brilliant pass while falling down, finding Aigeldinger in front of the net. Aigeldinger made an impressive one-touch spin-around shot into the top left corner for his second goal, completing one of the most dynamic highlight plays of the afternoon. The quarter ended with the Tigers comfortably in front 9-2.

The fourth quarter was relatively quiet, seeing a goal by Phoenixville's Brendan Bonner in the first minute, and one by Marple Newtown's freshman midfielder David Talda with 6:53 left in the game.

David Jones, in his first year as head coach at Marple Newtown, had this to say about his team's effort: "Both offensively and defensively there are a number of things we improved on. I was very proud of the team in how they approached the scrimmage, after coming off a big loss to Great Valley in our first scrimmage. While scrimmages may not count for/against your record, they are important in setting the tone for your season. After [this scrimmage], I think the team will have some more confidence going to Kennett on Friday and playing a team that beat us 15-4 last year."

Keep an eye on Patch's weekly sports roundup for details on future games.