Wheaton Academy boys lacrosse pulls away to defeat Benet Academy in state semifinal

Wheaton Academy boys lacrosse fends off Benet Academy for the 17-10 win to advance to the state championship. This highlight is sponsored by BMO.

After winning the super-sectional on Tuesday, Benet Academy is back in action in a state semifinal matchup against Wheaton Academy boys lacrosse. Last season, the Warriors defeated the Redwings 11-3 in the super-sectional.

Both teams going back and forth

After Wheaton scores the game’s first goal, Benet is on the attack. Michael Frieri falls down, but he tosses it to Charlie O’Grady who fires it into the back of the net. It’s a 1-1 game with 3 minutes into the action.

Minutes later, Thomas Tierney spins by the defense, connects with Erik Lorenzl in front of the crease and he scores the goal. The Redwings jump out to a 3-1 lead midway through the 1^st quarter.

Back on the other end, Breck Peacock is moving up field. He breaks towards the middle and then sends a rocket right through the Benet defense. The Warriors cut the lead down to 3-2.

Now, with under a minute left in the quarter. Peacock attacks the defense again, but this time he tosses it to Jake Miller cutting inside and his shot is good. Wheaton goes up by one.

Wheaton Academy pulls in front

On to the second quarter, the Warriors are in possession again. Noah Miller moves over to the middle and sends a bouncing shot right past the keeper. That’s five straight goals for Wheaton. They go up 6-3 with 8 minutes to go in the half.

With less than 3 minutes left, Charlie Foley fakes the shot, gets the step on his defender, and then goes up high for his 4^th goal of the game. Warriors up by four.

There’s now less than a minute left in the half and Benet is looking for one more shot. Erik Lorenzl makes his way around the field, right in front of the keeper and fires it right past him. Benet cuts the lead to 8-5 heading into the halftime break.

Now in the second half, this is Zeke Merchant attacking from behind the net. He finds Charlie Foley right in front of the crease and he’s got another goal. The Warriors are up 10-5.

Benet Academy fighting back but unable to get over the hump

After a couple of Redwings goals, Tommy Bartenhagen is looking for more. He gets around the corner with the hesitation move and then bounces a shot right through the Warriors’ defense. Benet is now down 10-8 halfway through the 3^rd quarter.

Still down two goals, the Redwings are back in possession. But Joe McBride disrupts the pass, it’s kicked down field, Gavin Pedone recovers it and the Warriors are out in transition. Pedone passes to Foley to his left, he takes a few steps in and unleashes a rocket into the back of the net. Wheaton goes up 12-9 with 3 minutes left in the 3^rd.

With less than a minute to go in the quarter, Michael Frieri is fighting through the Wheaton defense. He takes some hard hits and goes rolling onto the turf once, then twice, and then fires a shot that catches the keeper off guard.  Frieri’s hard-fought goal cuts the lead to 13-10 going into the 4^th.

After a couple Wheaton goals, Aiden Weisenborn surveys the defense from behind the net. He finds Noah Miller cutting inside and he scores his 3^rd goal of the game. Wheaton goes on to win 17-10, advancing to the state championship game against St. Viator.

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