Neither Calvert Hall nor weather slows Boys' Latin lacrosse

A number of things could have slowed down the Boys' Latin lacrosse team on Tuesday, first and foremost a formidable opponent in Calvert Hall.

There also was a cold, steady rain that was accompanied by high winds, but the No. 1 Lakers wouldn't be deterred.

Patrick Spencer scored four goals, Keegan O'Connor scored three and Shack Stanwick dished out four assists while goalie Jack Pezzulla made timely saves early to enable Boys' Latin to come away with a 12-5 home win over the No. 6 Cardinals.

The Lakers improved to 10-0 and 4-0 in the Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association A Conference to stay on top of the standings. Prior to Tuesday's win, Boys' Latin also defeated surging St. Mary's and defending league champion Loyola.

"We played three really good teams in a row, as you will have a tendency to do in the MIAA, and we were able to get through them all, so that a good start for us," Lakers coach Bob Shriver said.

With the game tied at 2, the Lakers pulled away with a dominant second quarter that spilled into the first minute of the third, a stretch in which the home team scored seven straight goals.

Spencer started the run with a goal at the 8:32 mark of the second quarter after some nifty passing in tight quarters. Devin Shewell looked left to find Stanwick, who made the extra pass to Spencer for the easy goal from the right side.

With the lead 5-2 with under two minutes to play in the half, Pezzulla (eight saves) stopped Ethan Mintzer's point-blank shot and then Spencer and Chell scored goals in the last 45 seconds for a 7-2 halftime lead.

O'Connor and Spencer removed any doubt with goals in the first minute of the third quarter for a 9-2 advantage.

"Jack Pezzulla bailed us out a couple times early in the game and it allowed us to slowly but surely keep adding goals," Shriver said. "And then the two goals to start the second half took any potential momentum from them."

Tuesday's win could prove costly for the Lakers, however, as senior defenseman Hugh Mosko had to be helped off the field later in the third quarter after suffering an injury to his left knee.

The Cardinals, whose roster is dominated by underclassmen, fell to 10-3 and 2-2 in the league with their second straight loss. Sophomore midfielder Michael Fanshaw scored three goals in the loss. His brother, Andrew, one of four seniors who see regular playing time, had to leave the game late in the fourth quarter after suffering a concussion.

"We're very young and we've lost two in a row, so now we have to figure out how to learn from our mistakes and fight through it," Calvert Hall coach Bryan Kelly said. "We have to play as a team in order to win, and it's a matter of guys trusting each other. The biggest thing for us is we have to compete, and I thought we did that [in Friday's loss against St. Mary's] but not as much today."

glenn.graham@baltsun.com

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