Bishop Guertin boys lacrosse pulls away in second half of win over Exeter (video)

NASHUA - There were plenty of things the Exeter High School boys lacrosse team corrected in the four days between its game against Bishop Guertin.

But a couple of breakdowns, including a stretch in the third quarter, allowed the Cardinals to get the upper hand and take control of Friday's game.

Bishop Guertin scored three goals in a 68-second stretch of the third and tacked on two more in the opening 92 seconds of the fourth to open up a six-goal lead on Exeter, and the Cardinals held on for a 12-6 win over the Blue Hawks in a Division I game at Stellos Stadium.

The Cardinals (8-0, No. 1 in the NHHSS Coaches Poll) got two goals apiece from Dawson Clark (one assist), Jon Krikorian (one assist), Declan Wilkie and Michael Kiely. Chris Heitmiller, Tim Kiely, John Sullivan and Aiden Laurendeau had a goal each. Zach Connerty finished with seven saves.

Despite getting balanced scoring, the offense was a far cry from the output Bishop Guertin put up on Monday, when it scored 21 goals against Exeter (7-2, No. 2).

"Exeter got beat up and they didn’t go away," Bishop Guertin coach Chris Cameron said. "They battled and they played and I give them credit. When you beat a team 21-8, it’s tough and you come out flat. It was 5-4 at the half and Exeter was happy, but we had just enough."

After leading 5-4 at halftime, Bishop Guertin wasn't able to create some separation until midway through the third quarter. Krikorian scored with 5:26 remaining in the quarter to start the Cardinals run, as Laurendeau added another goal 21 seconds after that and Krikorian got his second with 4:18 to go until the fourth.

The Blue Hawks took a timeout, but that surge proved to be too much to overcome.

"We played pretty well beside a four-minute breakdown," Exeter coach Gerry Holly said. "That kind of cost us. We had a couple of defensive breakdowns and guys started getting tired. Certainly the depth affects us, but in terms of our guys playing hard and giving up, they definitely played until the final whistle, so that’s encouraging."

Exeter was able to hang on to possession for the final three minutes of the quarter, firing five shots during that stretch, but the Blue Hawks couldn't find the back of the net. Bishop Guertin then opened the fourth with back-to-back goals by Wilkie and Michael Kiely to go up 10-4.

"They had two- or three-minute possessions," Cameron said. "They have some really good guys, but we matched up well. We faced off well and we made some saves. Once you fall behind by four goals, that felt like a lot. We had good performances from John Sullivan and Matt Cranney. It was a very good defensive performance from us."

Sullivan and Cranney helped hold Spencer Clark and Aidan Drunsic to one goal, which came from Clark with 10:17 remaining in the game. Connor Holly and Hayden Lechner had two goals apiece while Jack Mantell had a goal and an assist. Ethan Bernich made four saves.

Like Monday's game, when Exeter led 4-2 at the end of one quarter, the Blue Hawks jumped in front early, as goal by Connor Holly and Mantell gave them a 2-0 lead 3:07 into the game.

But Clark scored twice to tie the game up, and on the second goal, Exeter's Zach Gilvar was called for a slash. But the Cardinals couldn't capitalize on the advantage and turned the ball over.

Exeter took a timeout to keep possession, but out of the break, Sullivan helped force a Blue Hawks' turnover, got the groundball and scored to make it 3-2 Bishop Guertin with 3:02 left in the first quarter.

Lechner tied it 1:50 into the second when he scored right on the doorstep, but goals by Heitmiller and Michael Kiely gave Bishop Guertin a 5-3 lead. The Cardinals looked like they were going to get more after a long possession late in the half, but Bernich came up with a save and Connor Holly scored with 3.9 seconds left to make it 5-4 at the break.

Bishop Guertin made adjustments at halftime and was able to hold Exeter to just two goals in the second half, as the Cardinals' depth proved to be a key difference.

"I went to a drop-back ride to start, but I realized we had to crank this thing up," Cameron said. "That was the difference in the third quarter. We made some adjustments offensively, but more than anything, the intensity level picked up."