In 2021, Niagara Wheatfield boys lacrosse won five games — its fewest in a season in nearly two decades.
But little has changed for head coach Vince Schiffert’s roster since this point. Six of the seven underclassmen from that season are still suiting up and have now emerged into upperclassmen playmakers for the Falcons.
Coming off an eight-win season last spring, the Falcons are now 8-4 in 2023 with less than two weeks remaining until Section VI postseason play begins. The Falcons are also tied with Frontier for third place in the Section VI Class B standings.
Niagara Wheatfield jumped out to a strong start, having won eight of its first 10 contests, but have lost back-to-back games — first last Thursday versus Orchard Park (9-4) and then Monday at Lancaster (10-9).
Over the last three seasons, Schiffert said his biggest takeaway was having patience as the players were learning how to compete at the varsity level and even defeating Frontier in a 10-9 finish in last year’s postseason.
“Young guys, it takes a long time, and, you know, we do a lot of teaching,” Schiffert said. “You know, we took our lumps three years ago against the top teams. We beat the teams we’re supposed to beat. … This year, we’re looking to go further. (A Section VI) championship is what we’re looking for here.”
Through Monday, the Falcons are averaging 12.4 goals a game this season and are 8-0 when scoring 10 or more times in a game. However, the Falcons are 0-4 when failing to meet the mark, which includes losses to the Quakers, Legends, Lake Shore/Silver Creek (9-3 on April 24) and Frontier (12-8 on April 13).
The offense is led by senior attackers Landen Johnson (38 goals, 52 points) and Division II Lake Erie College commit Evan Belter (28 goals, 38 points) and provide different styles of scoring to Schiffert’s offense. To Schiffert, Johnson is a “catch and rip” player who can score from distance while Belter is a “dodge guy” around the net.
Junior Pierson Jacobs (18 goals) and freshman Braxton Kilgour (17 goals) have emerged as other scoring options for the Falcons, who have six players in total in double-figures.
But scoring is not Schiffert’s concern heading into the postseason. It’s learning how to control their emotions, he said, that will be “a major piece” for the Falcons leading up to and in the postseason.
“We’ve been a very emotional team,” Schiffert said. “We’ve had games (where) we’ve had 12 penalties. One game, we had nine penalties in one quarter. So, we’ve been working on that aspect of making good choices and all that sort of stuff.”
After winning six straight to start last season, the Falcons went through a rough stretch and lost 10 in a row before the home postseason win against Frontier. Johnson said what was learned from last season and was carried over into the off-season and tryouts was having more depth on the roster and more players buying into Schiffert’s system.
“We have more guys that want to get out there and have the drive to play,” said Johnson, who added Schiffert knows what it takes to win championships. “And, we have more guys that are willing to listen to the coach and do the little things to get in the game.”
With the mix of veterans and some players moving from the junior varsity level is the evolution of the offense itself. Since around the halfway point of the season, Schiffert said the ball is starting to move as players are sacrificing 10-yard shots to score for themselves to make the pass to the open teammate closer to the net.
For Belter, repetition and being creative with offensive formations in practice has also boosted the offensive production on the field, no matter who is out on the field and how long they’ve been a varsity letterman.
“We’re kind of just trying to build every year and we’re getting to that point where we’re getting to be a more dominant team in the league,” said Belter, who scored a team-high 45 goals last year as a junior. “And, we’re hoping to make that extra push to get this section championship this year.”
Sixteen players are projected to return in 2024. But Schiffert said this season is the time for the Falcons to rumble in the postseason and bring a sectional championship back to Sanborn for the first time since 2011.
“We’re kind of in a sweet spot right now but we can’t wait,” Schiffert said. “We got to do it now. Don’t wait till next year. Do it now.”
Niagara Wheatfield begins a four-game homestand to close the regular season against West Seneca West at 5 p.m. Tuesday at Terry Harvey Stadium. This will be followed by contests versus Williamsville North at 5 p.m. Thursday, Salamanca at noon Saturday. and Akron at 5 p.m. May 17.