NORTH ADAMS, Mass. -- McCann Tech’s Jason Delisle reeled off three goals in just more than three minutes of the fourth quarter on Monday at a time when the Hornets desperately needed that kind of lift.
The natural hat trick tripled McCann Tech’s offensive production for the second and third quarters combined, ended a run of three straight St. Mary’s goals, snapped a 5-5 tie and sent the Hornets on to an 8-6 win on Senior Day.
“Just a lot of posts, a lot of missed shots, a lot of shooting right at the goalie’s stick,” McCann Tech coach Paul Lange summed up his team’s offense until the last five minutes of the game.
“But we got it done, right? The win counts.”
It counts as win No. 10 for the Hornets (10-7), who have one game left, Wednesday at a Springfield Central team that McCann beat, 19-2, back on April 23.
The Hornets Monday secured a season sweep of St. Mary’s, and it was just as much of a dogfight as the one-goal win McCann Tech earned in Westfield earlier this month.
Monday’s game started out looking like the home team would run away with it. McCann Tech dominated the first quarter and had a 4-1 lead to show for it after a pair of goals from Zavier Martin-Levesque and one apiece from Darian Tovani and Colby Ghidotti.
But with all the time the Hornets spent in St. Mary’s end, it felt like they they should have more than that, and the missed opportunities loomed large later in the game.
The Saints played even with McCann in the second quarter and went into half-time, down, 5-2, despite a late goal from Delilse in transition.
In the third, Colin Ramos made six saves for the Saints, and Aaron Blanchard scored two of his game-high five goals to get St. Mary’s within a goal at 5-4.
Blanchard scored again midway through the fourth quarter to tie it, 5-5, with 6 minutes, 35 seconds on the clock.
Lange took a timeout to regroup.
“Just to dig down deep,” Lange said of his message. “Dig down deep, play for the seniors. It was Senior Day. And play the way we know how to play, too play our game. At that point, they just needed to play aggressive, tough defense. And, on offense, we needed to protect the ball, protect our sticks and not force things -- not try to dodge two or three guys. If you get in some traffic, you’ve got to pull out and try to find someone to pass to.
“And we started doing that at the end.”
Ghidotti set up Delisle for the go-ahead goal with 5:05 on the clock. Less than a minute later, the two hooked up again to make it 7-5, and Delisle added an unassisted goal to give McCann Tech a three-goal margin with 1:58 remaining.
The Hornets hope a lot of lacrosse remains in their season. They already have qualified for the Central/Western Massachusetts Tournament, and a berth in the State Vocational Tournament is likely as well.
But Monday’s final regular season home game was a chance for Lange to recognize his senior class.
“It was emotional,” he said. “These guys have been with me the last four years -- most of them. Some came in as sophomores. But they were here from Day One, you know what I mean.
“These guys are hard workers. They’re good leaders. They do everything right. They do things the right way, which is important to me as a coach -- not just on the lacrosse field. They’re good human beings. That’s more important than anything else, really.
“So hats off to them.”
