On Wednesday, April 1st, the Morgan boys lacrosse team played Woodstock Academy in a scrimmage, winning 10-5, giving them a good start to the upcoming season. 

At the start of the game, Woodstock Academy scored two quick goals, taking the lead early. But then, Morgan responded quickly by scoring three goals to regain the lead and elevate their momentum by putting pressure on Woodstock’s defense, and kept taking their shots at the goal. In the first half, the two teams continued to score goal after goal, but Morgan stayed in the lead and held high.

“It started with Morgan being down 2-0, but then we came back and tied the game up. It was very rainy and cold, giving the boys a disadvantage. Bowen even almost got into a fight, making the gameplay very wild. But we then were able to get a goal from the many shots we continued to take, and we tried to give them way more pressure later in the game,” Jacob Sharp said, a freshman at the Morgan school who is a part of the Morgan boys lacrosse team.

During the second half, Morgan held Woodstock to only one goal, with Morgan’s offense, scoring seven in the second half, getting hot, and the defense locking down the Woodstock offense. The final score would end up being a 10-5 win to Morgan. Goalscorers senior Jake Lichack, senior Jaydon O’Bymachow, senior Declan Shortt, sophomore Bowen Gersz, and sophomore Andrew Donnelly helped secure the win.

The scrimmage sets them up for their first game of the season against Valley on Saturday, April 4th, which will be their season opener. With this win in this pre-season game, it gives high hopes for the season ahead. “It definitely gives us confidence. We know what we’re capable of now, but at the same time, it shows we still have things to work on before the season really starts, “ said Jake Lichack, a senior at the Morgan school and one of three captains for the Morgan lacrosse team. 

“I think we played pretty well overall. It wasn’t perfect, but for a scrimmage, we showed a lot of effort and started to click as a team, especially as the game went on, which will help for the season ahead,” Lichack said.

Tanner Adamiec, a sophomore at the Morgan school and who is on the lacrosse varsity team, also agrees that the performance was spectacular. “For the game against Woodstock, we came to it knowing we were going to be a strong team this year, but now with a win to prove it, it got us excited and ready to continue to shock the Shoreline,” Adamiec said.

Looking back at the team’s execution, Lichack noted the star aspects of the match. “A lot of guys stepped up, which is what you want to see. Our offense was sharing the ball well, and our defense made some big stops when we needed them,” Lichack said.

“Some of our key guys from the game were definitely our captains, Jake, Declan, and Braeden. Braeden stepped up big time in the net, said Adamiec. “Declan had some really good feeds and goals that game, and Jake had some very impactful goals as well.”

“These three were standout players last year, especially Lichack, giving him the captain role again due to his performances and leadership in the past years. They’ve proved their worth in the team during this past game, and it will show out throughout their final season this year,” Adameic said.

“But it’s not just those three,” said Adamiec. “It was a team effort to get us there, and a lot of people stepped up into a varsity role who may not have been used to it from last year.”

“We had some strong moments where the ball was moving well, and we were communicating on defense,” Lichack said. Even with these positives, there were still negatives: “There were also times we got a little sloppy with turnovers and lost focus.”

With these negatives, there are still things to work on at practice. “We need to clean up the little things, like limiting turnovers and staying consistent the whole game. It’s stuff we can fix, though. If we can do that and keep our energy up, we’ll be in a good spot,” Lichack said.

Lichack was named captain of this team for the past two years, where it’s a very responsible role for him to take to try and lead his team to shock the Shoreline, but it was one he was willing to take. “Being in such a leading role in this team means a lot. I just try to lead by example, bring energy every day, and help keep everyone focused so we can reach our goals as a team,” Lichack said.

In the next couple of weeks, the boys lacrosse team will be facing stand-out teams, such as Haddam-Killingworth and North Branford, where these are the games they need to look out for. “With these match-ups coming soon, we really need to prepare for them, even though we got the win against Woodstock, these other teams are really good, so we have to go at them prepared,” Academic said.

With this preseason coming to an end, where the opening game is coming near, it’s clear that Morgan isn’t just practicing anymore; they are competing. All eyes are turning to the season opener against Valley, where they will look to carry the momentum from the Woodstock scrimmage into that game. On Saturday, April 4th, Morgan will look to prove their “shock the Shoreline” mentality is more than just a goal; it’s a reality.