IPSWICH — The ride employed by the Ipswich High boys lacrosse team is far from complex.
Broken down to its simplest form, the Tigers simply want their offensive players to play man-to-man on the opposing defense, making it difficult for them to clear that ball. It’s designed to create turnovers, which become IHS possessions, which give them more opportunities to score.
It was a strategy that worked well in the second half Tuesday against visiting Essex Tech, where Ipswich shook off a slow start and buried seven goals over the final 24 minutes of play to take a 9-4 victory at Jack Welch Field.
“Lock everyone off and try to make the goalie bring the ball up if you can,” long-time Ipswich (9-3) coach Glenn Foster said. “We have enough speed to do that; we don’t really have a slow kid. Our kids have figured out if you stay with your man and lock him up, they only have 10 seconds to do something with the ball … it’s an up-tempo, high pressure ride.”
Junior attackmen Finn Wright (5 goals, including his North Shore leading 52nd of the season), Luke Wile (2 goals) and Vin Winter (goal) were all dogged on the ride in that second half. When the ball did work its way towards the center of the turf, guys like Will Gromko and Louie Harrington were there to pick it up and get it moving back the other way, creating a faster tempo that seemed to wear on the Hawks as the game went on.
Essex Tech (now 7-7) came in averaging just under 10 goals a contest and features two of the area’s highest scoring talents in Timmy Tavares (72 points) and Mason Gadbois (69). But they were mitigated by a strong Ipswich defense, and problems at the other end also hurt the visitors’ upset chances.
“Their ride was very aggressive and we had a tough time clearing the ball. That gave them some extra possessions, allowing them to score a few more goals,” admitted first-year Hawks head coach Josh Field.
“We have to be more active on our clears,” he continued. “That’s been a hard part for us this season: the defense works hard and they get the ball, but we turn it over before we get to midfield. That’s something we have to be better at.”
Spencer McDavitt (“he’s like a vacuum; the best ground ball guy we’ve had since Andrew Mackey (an early 2000’s IHS attackman),” said Foster), Harrington, Gromko, Jacob Putur, Ollie York and faceoff ace Christian Gianakakis (10-for-13 on draws) limited what Essex Tech could do offensively after the Hathorne-based school jumped out to a 3-1 lead after one quarter.
Casey Collins had three of his team’s four goals, moving well off-ball and scoring twice on backside cuts. But Gadbois, blanketed a good part of the game by Putur, was limited to a goal and one assist; Tavares, who was covered by Gromko, to just a pair of assists.
“Their zone neutralized Timmy, our playmaker, a bit. But we have to be able to adjust to those defenses,” Field said. “When we’re playing ahead, we play with more confidence. But when we get behind by a goal or two, our mentality changes a bit. We’re not an iso offense that’s reliant on any one player; everyone has to contribute. That’s what we’re tying to teach.”
Connor Wright, a junior, needed to make just four saves to earn the win in net for Ipswich. His counterpart, Essex Tech freshman Joe Dresser, was much busier in turning aside 13 shots.
Trevor Manning also sniped a fourth quarter goal for Ipswich, his third of the season.
Essex Tech — which has the longest active playoff streak among North Shore boys lacrosse team, one that dates back to 2012 — got additional solid play in its own end from the likes of captain Enzo DeLuca, Owen Addessa, Sean Morris, LSM’s Ryan Connelly and Evan Kapnis, and Hadden Amico on the draw.
“This is as good of a team as we’ll see the rest of the season, and to hold them to under 10 goals says we’re capable of playing with them,” reasoned Field. “If we can come out and play teams like we did in the first quarter, or even first half today we’re going to be fine.”
Contact Phil Stacey
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