PITTSFIELD, Mass. – The McCann Tech boys lacrosse team has had trouble finishing its offensive chances.
The Pittsfield boys won six of its first eight games on the strength of its defense.
It was a perfect storm for the Generals when the teams met in a light rain at Egremont Elementary School on Wednesday.
Mitchel Manning scored three goals, and Ray Lynch and Cam McKillop each scored a pair for the Generals, who gave up just two goals through the first three quarters in an 8-4 win.
“Our defense is definitely one of the stronger aspects of our team,” Pittsfield coach J. Noah Tullock said. “As you can see from today from some plays from Camdyn McKillop and Anthony Fiorini, they get up into the mix, too, on offense. So it’s good to see we have poles who can move up and down the field. It really helps us with our defensive game and key possessions.”
It also helps to have strength on the back end, where Hunter Christman made 13 saves on Wednesday to earn the win.
“He’s one of our most valuable players,” Tullock said. “He plays that way almost every day. It’s good to see when he’s got a strong game going and controlling the crease and managing the defense.”
Goals were hard to come by for either team in the first half, which ended in a 2-2 tie.
Manning broke through in the first couple of minutes, but the Hornets’ Max Morin responded to tie the game at 1-1 after one.
Midway through the second quarter, McCann Tech’s Parker Hart converted a shot from high on the left wing to give his team its only lead of the day at 2-1. McKillop scored a transition goal in the 21st minute of the game to send the teams into the break all even.
McCann Tech coach Marshall Maxwell said there was a lot to like about his team’s first half – except when it came to putting the ball in the net.
“We had our opportunities,” he said. “The goalie made some very good saves. In the first half, we turned them over like crazy.
“We had 18 shots in the first half. We had two goals to show for it. You can’t win lacrosse scoring two out 18 of your shots. You just can’t do it.”
At least, you cannot most of the time.
“Last week, we had 42 shots against Monson and had four goals,” Maxwell said. “We won, 4-3.”
McKillop scored his second goal of the game, again in transition, in the second minute of the second half for what turned out to be the game-winner, putting Pittsfield on top, 4-2.
Late in the third quarter, Ray Lynch scored to make it a two-goal game for the first time.
The Generals maintained their lead despite giving up a two-man advantage to McCann Tech midway through the quarter.
“Killing off penalties is something that’s been a challenge for us all season,” Tullock said. “We’ve been taking quite a few [penalties] – a few too many. So it’s something for us to work on. We actually have a team goal to cut our penalties down.
“But taking that into account, I feel like we’re able to kill off penalties pretty consistently with our defense the way that they are, and I feel like that’s a huge piece of our game. Defensively, it’s just stopping the ball, and that uplifts the team.”
Manning scored a pair to open the fourth quarter and give Pittsfield a 6-2 lead with 6:03 on the clock. The teams traded goals from there, with Nick Abuisi scoring a pair for the Hornets.
McCann Tech (4-5) will look to get back to .500 on Friday when it hosts Hoosac Valley, which, like Pittsfield, handed the Hornets a one-goal loss when they played last month.
“Our kids work hard,” Maxwell said of the Hornets. “We worked hard all week on the ride in practice, and in the first half, we probably created 12 turnovers. We’re just looking for answers on offense.”
The Generals (7-2) also will be looking to avenge an early season loss on Friday when they host Lenox at Berkshire Community College.
“It’s always going to be competitive when we play against better teams, like Lenox,” McKillop said. “Everyone thinks that we have to be ready for them. But I think they have to be ready for us, because we’re coming for them.”
