Boys' Lacrosse: Marriotts Ridge Triumphs Over Howard, Eyes State Title

The Marriotts Ridge Mustangs took home their first regional title since 2007 on Wednesday with a 12-8 barnburner win over the Howard Lions. Both teams played their hearts out, but in the end Marriotts Ridge just had more firepower.

The victory puts the Mustangs in the state semifinals, one more win away from playing in the championship game.

“I was glad that clock kept moving,” Marriotts Ridge Coach Dan Sageman said after the game. “You’re always nervous. You’ve been through these wars and seen teams come back, but the guys just played well. Howard gave us everything they had, so I’m very proud of [my team].”

Howard fought hard throughout the game. The game remained in doubt and the Lions were never out of reach until the very end. It was a back-and-forth battle; every time Marriotts Ridge got a lead, Howard would fight back.

In the third quarter, it looked like the Lions would break through at any moment. But the Mustangs held tough. Then, in the fourth quarter, Howard’s Brock Wendt scored to bring the Lions within three, down 10-7 with 7:20 left to play.

But in the signature play of the game, Brian Martinelli of Marriotts Ridge won the ensuing faceoff, which allowed Pat Serio to run down the field and score his fifth goal just six seconds later.  

It was a backbreaker. All of the momentum Howard had just gathered to put Marriotts Ridge on the ropes had suddenly evaporated.

Other than a goal in the last 90 seconds of the game, Howard would not be heard from again.

Despite playing a game that was the stuff of legends, Serio would not buy into the hype around himself.  

“It’s a team effort,” he said. “And nothing to do with my personal stats.” Serio was eager to praise teammates Gavin Harrison and Martinelli, the faceoff specialist, for putting him in the position to be the hero.  

He was glad that Marriotts Ridge was finally able to win the regionals for the first time since 2007.

“It feels like a long time coming, and we’ve had some teams fall short,” Serio said. “It just feels great to do it for all those seniors in the past who didn’t have a chance to win this.”

Marriotts Ridge would not have been able to win the game if Serio hadn’t assured that momentum never left his team for long.

It was Serio who put his opponents down a goal just 31 seconds into the game. After a second Marriotts Ridge goal by Chad Williams, Howard was in a 2-0 hole. They got on the board thanks to a goal by Connor Stevens, but, foreshadowing things to come, Gavin Harrison answered with a goal a little more than a minute later to leave Howard trailing again at 3-1.

Harrison scored again early in the second quarter to put Marriotts Ridge ahead by three, 4-1. Greg Limon appeared to stop the bleeding, showing some nice moves, making it through the defense and firing the ball into the goal with considerable authority to bring Howard within two.

Harrison would have none of that. He answered with his third goal just over 30 seconds later. Harrison, and later Serio, would see to it that every time Howard got things going their way, Marriotts Ridge would have an answer.

Despite being unable to gain momentum, Howard still fought hard and went into halftime down 6-4. They let up a goal at the start of the second half but got the goal back when Zack Wrisk stole the ball and ran down for an easy goal. That brought Howard within two at 7-5 with eight minutes to play in the third quarter.

It was a major shift in the game, and Howard would dominate possession for the next four minutes or so of game time.

But here was where Marriotts Ridge was at its finest. Mustangs’ goalie Mack Schwarz saved goal after goal to keep Howard from breaking through.

“Making one save after the other is just outstanding. It feels great,” Schwarz said of the third quarter. “I know every time I save one, my offense is going to put one in.”   

He was right.

Serio scored to put the Mustangs up 8-5 with four minutes to play in the third. And then he scored again less than a minute later. His third consecutive goal came with 10 minutes to play in the fourth quarter, giving the Mustangs a commanding 10-5 lead.

Howard would still not go quietly.

Brock Wendt and Zack Wrisk each scored to bring Howard to a very manageable 10-7 deficit with 7:20 left in the game.

But that was when Serio scored his fifth goal. Each one before had been a back breaker. This one, coming just six seconds after Howard's goal, delivered the final knockout punch.

Ethan Tompkins would score for Marriotts Ridge at the four-minute mark. Greg Limon got one back for Howard with a little over a minute left in the game to take it to the 12-8 final score