Third Quarter Run Keys Lacrosse Win Over Darien H.S.

In a highly anticipated non-league match-up, Brunswick survived a late surge by visiting Darien H.S., earning an 11-9 on Cosby Field on Wednesday night. The victory bumps the Bruins’ record to 15-2, while the Blue Wave falls to 12-4.

 

Brunswick, ranked seventh in the latest Under Armour/Inside Lacrosse national poll, score the lone goal in the first quarter. Coulter Mackesy netted the opening tally at 3:09 to give the Bruins a 1-0 lead.

 

In the second quarter, the two teams alternated scores four times, starting with a man-up goal by Michael Gottlieb at 11:27. Following a Darien tally, Gottlieb notched another goal at the 9:49 mark. Leading 3-1, Jeffrey Matthews countered a Blue Wave marker, as the teams exchanged goals one final time before the half. Luke Waters’ righty dodge was the fourth Brunswick tally, as Darien’s last goal of the half set the score at 5-4 in favor of the Bruins at 2:42. Brunswick net-minder Christian Barnard ensured a one-goal lead in the final seconds of the half, turning away a Blue Wave shot as well as a doorstep rebound.

 

In the third quarter, the Bruins pulled ahead with their decisive four-goal run. Cooper Moore started the scoring burst with a goal on a lefty shot at 11:22. Liam Fairback followed, finishing off a Mackesy assist on a man-up marker, as Gottlieb notched his third goal of the game at 3:19. Less than a minute later, AJ Delgado capped the run with a tough-angle shot to give the hosts a 9-4 lead.

 

Darien opened the fourth quarter with a goal that snuck in under the crossbar at 8:15. Brunswick followed with two-straight goals, including a Mackesy goal off a Christian Ronda helper that bumped the Bruins lead to six goals (11-5) with 5:11 remaining in the game.

 

The Blue Wave countered with a four-goal burst and closed the gap to 11-9 with just 1:23 remaining. Following a tally at 4:35, Darien netted a six-on-four up tally at 3:03. The visitors added a transition goal at 1:31 and won the ensuing face-off. Eight seconds later, the Blue Wave made it an 11-9 game, as a man-up shot on goal was deflected and the ricochet found the back of the Bruins’ net.

 

Brunswick’s Koby Ginder won the final face-off and scooped up the ground ball. The Bruins pushed the ball into the Darien zone, but turned the ball over on a double-team with just under a minute to play.

 

Darien cleared the ball into their offensive zone, spun the ball around and took a shot that was blocked and went out of bounds with 32.9 remaining.

 

Following a Blue Wave time-out, the visitors got one final shot on net with 20 seconds left, but Barnard made the save, as the Bruins ran out the clock to seal the two-goal win.

 

Brunswick wraps up its season with a league contest at Berkshire on Saturday, May 18.

Darien 0 4 0 5 – 9

Bruins 1 4 4 2 – 11

 

Coulter Mackesy (2,2), Michael Gottlieb (3,0), Cooper Moore (1,1), Luke Waters (1,0), AJ Delgado (1,0), Brody Firestein (1,0), Liam Fairback (1,0), Jeffrey Matthews (1,0), Christian Ronda (0,1)