By Luke Nadkarni / Scrimmageplaycva.com contributor
Monticello needed three chances, but when it counted — and after Western Albemarle’s crosstown win, with its season on the line — the Mustangs finally found a way to beat Charlottesville.
Monticello’s boys lacrosse team came away with a 9-8 victory in the West Central Division semifinals on Monday night after two regular season losses to the Black Knights. Chase Phillips paced the Mustangs with four goals in the back-and-forth affair, while Michael Darby and Brodie Phillips added two goals apiece.
The game featured six lead changes and was even throughout, with no team leading by more than three goals at any point. Charlottesville led 3-2 after the first quarter, but the Mustangs dominated the second frame, reeling off four unanswered goals, including one by Brodie Phillips just before the halftime horn to send Monticello into the break with a 6-3 advantage.
The Black Knights responded with four straight goals of their own in the third quarter, with all goals coming on extra-man opportunities. Chase Phillips stopped the bleeding for the Mustangs with the equalizer with just under five minutes remaining in the period, then fed Will Snipes three minutes later to give Monticello the lead for good at 8-7.
“With the leadership we have on this team, we can figure it out for ourselves.” Monticello coach Matt Hicks said of his team’s lackluster start to the third quarter. “As a group, we have to collectively buy in to what we want to execute as a team.
As offensively-focused as the middle of the game was, defense dominated the final period. Chase Phillips gave the Mustangs an insurance goal midway through the period, but Deion Rainey responded for Charlottesville with four minutes remaining to cut the lead to one. From there, senior goalie George Van Dyke and the rest of the Monticello defense weathered the Charlottesville attack to come away with the victory.
“Our defense really shut them down,” Van Dyke said of the final sequence. “I was hoping they wouldn’t get a good shot off, and they didn’t.”
The Mustangs advance to the West Central Division championship game on Thursday night against Western Albemarle. The Warriors upset cross-county rival Albemarle 5-4 in Monday’s other semifinal.
