Chardon Hilltoppers boys lacrosse is off to a great start. On March 28, the team defeated Willoughby South, 15-2, then won over Canfield two days later, 12-6.
Game photos click here.
Chardon Hilltoppers boys lacrosse is off to a great start. On March 28, the team defeated Willoughby South, 15-2, then won over Canfield two days later, 12-6.
The Hilltoppers are now 3-0 on the season.
Chardon Head Coach Andy Caballero discussed his team’s victory over Willoughby South.
“It went well,” Caballero said. “We just needed to keep the tempo up.
“It was a good competition, though. It definitely kept our boys on our toes. South, you know, stayed in there, and they were definitely playing some hard defense, which kind of gave us a wake up call.”
The Hilltoppers got ahead earl and did not look back, scoring 11 unanswered goals in the first three quarters.
They added four additional goals in the fourth quarter, while the Rebels added only two to make the final score, 15-2.
Leading scorers for the Hilltoppers were Nick Snyder and Edyn Haueter, who both netted three.
“The game today, we fought really hard,” Snyder said. “I had a couple good goals today. As long as I am cutting and moving, the goals will happen.”
Added Haueter, “It was a good game all around.”
Also contributing to the scoring were Nick DeMore, Ethen Jackson and Daniel Humphrey, all of whom scored twice. Caleb Foster, Anthony Raines and Jason Rus also scored for the Hilltoppers.
Leading the Hilltoppers in assists in the victory were Snyder (4 assists), Jackson (3), Haueter (2), Vincent Schmidt (2) and Adam Zielinski (2).
The Hilltoppers were dominant both on the offensive and defensive sides of the field against the Rebels. They produced 26 shots on goal, and scored on 15 of those shots for a 57 percent conversion rate.
Leading Chardon in shots on goal were Jackson (5 shots on goal), Snyder (4), Nick DeMore (4), Foster (3), Haueter (3) and Rus (3). Also, contributing shots on goal were Meyer, Raines, Schmidt, and Zielinski.
Just as strong on the defensive side of the field, the Hilltoppers allowed the Rebels only nine shots on goal. The Rebels did not capitalize on these shots, either, until late in the game, when they scored twice in the fourth quarter.
Another important metric contributing to Chardon’s dominance was its fielding. The Hilltoppers successfully fielded 33 ground balls with 13 players contributing.
Leading in the field were Jacob Heintz (7 ground balls), William Vucetic (5) and Jackson (3). Eight Hilltoppers had two ground balls apiece: Snyder, Nick DeMore, Foster, Michel Oh, Schmidt, Daniel Humphrey, Zachary Heintz and Sam Sacerich.
Rus and Raines also fielded ground balls for the Hilltoppers.
On March 30, then, the Hilltoppers extended their winning streak to three.
Canfield took an early 2-1 lead over the Hilltoppers in the first quarter. However, Chardon scored seven goals in the second quarter to take an 8-3 halftime lead.
The Hilltoppers outscored Canfield, 4-3, in the second half to make the final score 12-6.
Leading the way for the Hilltoppers against Canfield were Snyder, Foster and Jackson. All three had hat tricks, scoring three goals apiece.
Jackson led the Hilltoppers with three assists against Canfield. Nick DeMore, Foster, Haueter and Snyder also had an assist each for the Hilltoppers.
The Hilltoppers will try to extend their winning streak to five as they face Holy Name on April 5 and Hawken on April 8.
