It was a week of mixed results and emotions for the Bishop Moore men’s lacrosse team (12-5). The week began with a victory in a tightly contested rivalry game on the road at Lake Highland Prep and ended in what appeared to be an uninspired loss to Cardinal Mooney High School despite the fact it was the final regular season home game for nine seniors.
Those seniors, along with their underclassman teammates, will get an opportunity for redemption this week as Bishop Moore plays host to the district tournament which will begin on Tuesday night. The Hornets enter districts the #1 seed and are heavy favorites to once again return to the state. The Hornets face the Dr. Phillips Panthers in the tournament’s opening round. Edgewater and The First Academy will also faceoff with the winner advancing to the district finals Thursday night.
Bishop Moore 14, Lake Highland 12
Despite playing at least one man-down for more than a period worth of time due to penalties, the Hornets were able to outlast Lake Highland 14-12 on the road. Junior attackman RJ Sanfilippo’s second goal of the game gave Bishop Moore a 3-1 lead mid-way through the first period and represented the largest margin either team would have in the first half. Sanfilippo added a goal with just seconds remaining in the first half to give the Hornets a 6-5 halftime lead. The Highlanders were mostly incapable of capitalizing on the Hornets mistakes, converting on just 2 of 7 extra man opportunities in the first half.
Although the penalties continue to stack up for Bishop Moore in the second half, the Hornets outscored the Highlanders 6-2 in the third period. Senior attackman, Jake Kiefer, added his fifth goal of the game to give the Hornets at 12-7 advantage into the fourth period. Junior attackman, Brooks Rask, extended the lead to 13-7 early in the fourth period before the Highlanders rattled off three consecutive goals to close in on the Hornets. Kiefer added his sixth and final goal of the game to give the Hornets a 14-10 lead before Highlander senior attackman, Derek Farwell, added his fourth and fifth goals of the game before time expired.
Former Bishop Moore faceoff man, Hudson Bohn, who now suits up for the Highlanders won 16 of 27 faceoffs including 10 of the final 15 in the game. Bohn also had a goal in the third period that tied the game 7-7.
Bishop Moore 8, Cardinal Mooney 17
The regular season finale against the 5th ranked team in the state, the Cardinal Mooney Cougars (17-1), did not play out the way nine seniors on the Hornets roster had hoped. At the same time, the team itself did not perform the way coaches hoped they would either. The Cougars started fast, shot even quicker and jumped out to an astonishing 11-4 half time lead on 26 shots.
The Cougars stretched the lead to 13-4 after three periods and thwarted any comeback attempt by the Hornets by matching them with four goals in the final period.
Of the Hornets eight goals and five assists for the game, Jake Kiefer and Jackson Canfield were the only two seniors to contribute. Kiefer finished the season with a team high 54 goals. Canfield, a defenseman, scored 13 goals this season.