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The Rockbridge County High School boys lacrosse team cruised to two road victories last week, routing Christiansburg 18-0 last Tuesday before defeating Charlottesville 17-2 on Thursday.
Against Christiansburg (0-4), the Wildcats (3-2) played their most dominant game of the season.
RC head coach Robert Hull said it was “a dominant performance in all aspects of the game, from offense to transition to defense.”
The large lead allowed the Wildcats to get a lot of their younger players into the game.
Hull said his team’s defense “played extremely well, continuing to work on solidifying their new defensive strategy, confusing and confounding the Blue Demons and thwarting all attempts to get on the scoreboard.”
The RC coach praised the defensive play of Wildcats Colby Jarvis, Sawyer Hattersley, Milo Multalo, Ethan Forbes and Zane Ramsey. All “played lights out,” helping secure the shutout for sophomore goalie Jack Jensen.
Offensively, the team scored “at a prolific pace,” with many players contributing, said Hull.
River Hull led RC with five goals and dished out one assist, Alex Nye added four goals and an assist, Jayden Layman had three goals and an assist, and Andrew Kelly added three goals and dished out three assists. Quincy Speers dished out two assists, and John Brooke, Ethan Forbes, Brady Cauley each scored once.
The Wildcats also dominated faceoffs, with Kelly going 14-of-19.
RC 17, CHS 2
The Wildcats had a similar performance in their 17-2 road win over Charlottesville (0-3) on Thursday.
Kelly won 21-of-23 faceoffs, giving the Wildcats possessions consistently.
Brooke led RC with four goals and dished out one assist, Layman scored three goals, and River Hull added three goals and two assists. Nye had two goals and two assists, Speers added two goals and three assists, and Cauley chipped in two goals. Scoring once each were Forbes and Kelly. Two defensive stats set up scores, with Jarvis dishing out two assists and Garrett Stillwell adding an assist.
It was another strong game in goal for Jensen.
Pleased with his team’s progress, Hull said, “I am proud of the steps we have been taking forward as a team and the growth of the players in recognizing how important playing as a unit is when trying to accomplish something successful.”
“Young players in this day and age are bombarded with the need for selfies and what we coaches call ‘look at me’ syndrome,” added Hull. “It is counterintuitive, but a huge life lesson to look beyond oneself and be part of something bigger. Wins are important, but we as coaches are trying to build men that will be leaders in our community and part of a bigger picture than just themselves as individuals. It is not lost on us that it is an uphill battle, but a goal worth getting them to see. It’s a process and we are getting there day by day.”
After spring break this week, the Wildcats will return to action when they play host to Salem next Wednesday, April 12. The junior varsity game is slated for 5:30 p.m., with the varsity game scheduled to follow at 7:15.
The Wildcats will look to avenge their 16-5 loss in the season opener on March 13 at Salem.
“We have grown and changed some strategies and are excited to see if these guys can show the Spartans we shouldn’t be taken for granted,” said Hull.
