Messalonskee boys lacrosse finishes strong against Mt. Ararat

Peyton Henning, left, and Tatum Doucette, front right, celebrate after the Messalonskee boys lacrosse team scored Wednesday against Mt. Ararat. (Cooper Sullivan/Staff Photographer)

TOPSHAM — When the Messalonskee boys lacrosse team played on back-to-back days last week, the Eagles wound up with two losses.

This week they came away with two wins.

A 13-3 victory over Mt. Ararat on Wednesday solidified Messalonskee atop the Class B Heal point standings with one week remaining in the regular season. Messalonskee is ranked No. 7 in the Varsity Maine Top 10.

“Obviously you want to be your best going into playoffs,” sophomore attack Peyton Henning said. “Getting out of a slump like right before the end of the season is just so great for us.”

Messalonskee (10-3) was coming off an 11-5 win Tuesday against Morse, another likely Class B playoff team.

Mt. Ararat (6-5) is ranked seventh in the Class B Heal standings.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Stellar point-blank goaltending on both ends of the field kept the score low early. Messalonskee led 2-1 after the first quarter despite controlling possession and forcing numerous turnovers.

•The visitors caught a break midway through the second quarter when defender Seth Hansen took a hard shot to the body, blocking an otherwise open net and stealing a tying goal away from Mt. Ararat. Less than a minute later, Messalonskee drew a penalty and kicked its offense into high gear. Five players scored in the last 5:26 of the second quarter, including two man-up goals.

• Mt. Ararat scored the first goal in the third and fourth quarter, but each time Messalonskee answered with three goals. Messalonskee coach Tom Sheridan was pleased with his defense’s adjustments.

“It’s gonna happen, lacrosse is an offensive game, so don’t get too burned about it,” he said. “If we can keep a team under 10, we feel pretty good about that, and under five is pretty good, so we like that, too.”

CAREER MILESTONES

• Two Messalonskee starters reached milestones in the first half. First, junior goalie Andrew Witham made his 500th career save. Then, senior attack Landon Stewart reached 100 career points with a second-quarter assist to Daymion LeBlanc. Stewart finished with a goal and three assists.

• Mt. Ararat senior midfielder Phoenix Norton, who reached 100 career points in the previous game against Marshwood, added to his total with a first-quarter goal.

STATISTICAL LEADERS

• Messalonskee: Peyton Henning (five goals), Max Nevins (two goals), Tatum Doucette (two goals), Malachi Cusano (goal, five assists), Landon Stewart (goal, three assists), Andrew Witham (10 saves)

• Mt. Ararat: Conor Olson (12 saves), Jack Martin (goal, assist), Phoenix Norton (goal), Luke Anderson (goal), Brennan Fitzpatrick (assist)

NOTABLE QUOTABLE

• “(Conor Olson is) one of those kids that he’s only going to get better. It’s scary that he’s a freshman. It’s awesome. It’s something to build around, which is nice. The entire team’s excited. I know that the underclassmen are really, really excited to have the opportunity to play with someone like Conor, who’s just wants to give it his all, all the time.” — Mt. Ararat coach Jason Lachance