Home Local Sports Salesianum battles, drops tough lacrosse matchup with Canada’s Hill Academy

Salesianum battles, drops tough lacrosse matchup with Canada’s Hill Academy

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Chris Wong of Salesianum scores his third goal against Hill while getting knocked over. (The Dialog/Mike Lang)

WILMINGTON – Salesianum’s lacrosse team annually plays the toughest schedule of any team in Delaware, and this year is no different. On May 3, the Sals welcomed perennial foe Hill Academy to Wilmington, and the Pride showed why they are one of the best prep teams around. The visitors from the Toronto, Ont., area took a few minutes to get started, but once they did, they went on to a 16-8 victory on the outdoor turf field at the 76ers Fieldhouse.

Playing in front of a big crowd, Sallies struck first on a delayed penalty call. Bradley Santore set up behind Pride goalie James Carroll, and he found Chris Wong cutting in from Carroll’s right. Wong one-timed Santore’s pass to put the Sals ahead early. They doubled the lead during the man-up situation, with Brady McGovern getting free in front of the net and scoring.

Salesianum’s Dominic Rottura defends against Gavin Snow of Hill Academy during their game on April 3. (The Dialog/Mike Lang)

Hill got on the board at the 5:29 mark, with Adam Poitras doing the honors. Sals goalie Jake Marchiafava made an impressive stop with just over three minutes to play, but Dyson Williams tied the game at with a nice over-the-shoulder shot after picking up the rebound. Wong took a pass from Logan Falconetti from behind the net with 2:28 left in the first and connected high, but Williams countered with his second of the afternoon a minute later. The period ended with the score knotted, 3-3.

Falconetti earned another assist early in the second, feeding McGovern for a bouncer in front that put Salesianum ahead, 4-3, two and a half minutes into the second. That, however, would be the team’s final lead of the afternoon. Hill started taking control of the faceoffs and ground balls, and the offense kicked into gear.

The Pride scored the next five goals in a span of about six minutes. Williams got his hat trick on a one-timer to get the run started. On his fourth goal, which put the Pride ahead, 7-4, he caught the ball while in the air, and he shot before he landed. Graydon Hogg went high over Marchiafava for the final marker of the run. Falconetti deked and scored with 27 seconds to go in the half to end the drought and pull the Sals to within 8-5 at intermission.

Hill turned up the defensive pressure as the second half opened, causing a number of ground balls. They also drew a Sallies penalty, scoring twice on an unreleaseable infraction. The Pride scored twice more after the penalty expired, extending their lead to 12-5. Santore nabbed the Sals’ lone goal of the third, hitting an empty net after Carroll left his crease, but the deficit remained seven heading into the fourth thanks to a goal by Jack Boyden.

The Pride played a possession game in the fourth, limiting the Sals’ opportunities. Wong did get his third goal of the day at the 10:38 mark, accepting a pass from Loganetti and beating Carroll while taking a whack from a Hill defender. Falconetti scored from in tight to end the scoring in the final minutes of the game.

Final statistics were not available late Friday night. Wong finished with three goals, while McGovern and Falconetti each had a pair. Santore was the other scorer. The Sals (6-6) travel to St. Mark’s on Wednesday for a 7:30 p.m. battle with the Spartans.

The Pride won their third straight game in Wilmington, having defeated the Sals at Baynard Stadium in 2017 and in overtime in 2016. The Sals defeated Hill last season at Canisius College in Buffalo, N.Y.