Winchester Lacrosse Secures First Round Victory

It was more of the same from the

After a tight first half that saw the Sachems head into halftime with a four-goal lead over Dartmouth, Winchester exploded in the second, defeating the Indians, 15-4, in the opening round of the MIAA Lacrosse East Division.

“We were able to overwhelm them,” said Winchester Coach, John Pirani. “They had a pretty good record and we didn’t know what to expect. But we gave them a bunch of different looks and they weren’t able to handle our pressure defense.”

The 27th seeded Indians (10-6) also struggled to contain Winchester senior, Ed Dorr. The attacker scored Winchester’s (12-5) first four goals.

As the Sachems attacked the Dartmouth defense, Dorr would slip to the front of the net, wait for the pass and put it in the back of the net.

“That’s what he does,” Pirani said of Dorr. “That wasn’t part of the game plan, but he was just able to get behind the defense all day.”

After struggling to score in the first period, the Indians cut No. 6 Winchester’s lead to two, at 3-1 early in the second after Jay Souoa found the back of the net.

But the Sachems ended the half with two more goals, by Dorr and junior Andrew Laugharn. The streak continued into the second half as Winchester scored seven of the next eight goals, putting the game out of reach.

“It happens a lot in the first round,” Pirani said. “You see it every year. We get all jacked up and try to win the game in the first periods. Guys were like hyperventilating after the first. We just needed to come down and play our game.”

The Sachems will host No. 22 Bishop Feehan on Friday, June 3 at 5 p.m. at Manchester Field. Feehan defeated No. 11 Beverly, 6-5.

“I don’t know anything about them,” Pirani said. “But they have to be good to beat Beverly. We’ll be ready to go.”