Submitted by Langley Lacrosse:
March 18, 2011 — Undefeated Georgetown Prep greeted the Langley Saxons in an early-season boys lacrosse clash this past Friday that saw Coach Kevin Giblin’s “Little Hoyas” not heavily troubled by the VHSL state titles secured in the past two years by their guests from Virginia. The IAC hosts carved out a tidy 12-3 victory for a third straight win to start the 2011 campaign and looking eager to exceed accomplishments of last year when an 18-4 record earned ranking of No. 2 in the DC/MD/VA region and within the top ten of high schools nationwide.
For Langley (0-1), the defeat on Friday was its first loss in regulation time following 44 consecutive contests going back to May 2008 when Coach Earl Brewer’s Saxons fell by 6-5 to the Oakton Cougars in a Virginia Northern Region play-off quarterfinal.
Hoya senior attackman Cory Dobyns contributed a hat-trick, as did junior attacker Kyle Shanahan, while senior middie Bobby Gribbin scored two to go with single goals from senior Sean Crim and junior Liam Giblin, both attackers, as well as from senior Joel Blockowicz and junior Chad Strittmatter from the middie position.
Langley got goals from junior attacker Mike Adams, senior middie Dan Gallucci, and senior attacker Jack Sandusky.
Saxon junior goalie Andrew Spivey was credited with nine saves while seniors Ford Martin and Scott Duff split duties in net by halves for Prep and made two and four saves, respectively.
An eight-goal run starting late in the opening period elevated Georgetown to a firm winning position by the early stages of the second half. The barrage included a 5-0 second period that featured a goal from Giblin from just outside the crease, scoring volleys from distance by Gribbin and Blockowicz, a left-hand five-yarder from Dobyns, and a 10-yard strike from Shanahan.
It was Langley, however, that grabbed the game’s first goal just over five minutes from the start when Adams converted a crisp feed-in pass from sophomore middie Luke Salzer and snapped in past Martin from just outside the crease. Shanahan replied for Prep less than two minutes later, this after senior defender Jeff Hale had forced a turnover and initiated an aggressive clearance into fluid transition play. The Hoya longpole continued on the attack and provided the assisting pass leading to Shanahan dispatching into Spivey’s net.
The Saxons regained the lead with less than two minutes remaining in the first quarter with Gallucci supplying an unassisted goal from 12 yards out. But Georgetown had other ideas and promptly responded in the last minute of the opening period with a quick pair to forge a lead it would never relinquish. Dobyns snapped in from just outside the crease off of a short set-up pass from Giblin, and in a flash, Gribbin drilled in from 10 yards out only 23 seconds later for the 3-2 lead.
The Hoyas enjoyed an 8-2 advantage heading into a relatively quiet third quarter that had each side collecting a goal. Dobyns used a left-hand delivery to deposit past Spivey and close out his hat-trick for the evening before Sandusky maneuvered his way through Prep defensive obstacles to slot in from close range for the third Saxon goal of the night. Langley did show better composure in its play during the period and enjoyed some longer stretches of possession in attack, but the sturdy Hoya defenses offered the visitors precious few good glimpses of goal.
Both goalies were kept busy nonetheless, and were forced into some fine saves. Spivey had to be alert when Gribbin launched a powerful effort from 10 yards followed late in the period by a promising attempt by Blockowicz. On the other end, Duff, who assumed second-half net duties for Georgetown, denied several Saxon scoring bids, among them a low shot from Langley junior middie Clay Rivers that the Hoya keeper smothered at the last moment, as well as at the end of a partial break that Duff thwarted smartly by coming out of his crease at just the right time to stifle options for the Saxon attack. Duff was also grateful for his goal pipe keeping out a crease-side snapshot from an unguarded Adams in one of the rare moments Georgetown defenses slackened.
Prep closed out the contest adding a trio of goals in the final period for the decisive win. Shanahan registered his third of the night followed by an 8-yarder from Crim and Strittmatter’s bounce shot from 15 yards to add gloss to the victory.
The Hoyas next travel to face MD A MIAA-R St. Paul’s Crusaders (3-1) in a non-conference battle on Tuesday while Langley visits the Marshall Statesmen (1-1) on Monday to commence its Liberty District competition for the year.
Note: Until last Friday, the Saxons’ three losses since May 2008 have all been in sudden-death overtime –in 2009 to the Madison Warhawks, and last season to the Loudoun Valley Vikings and Robinson Rams.
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