Goffstown, Kingswood boys lacrosse show their mettle in early showdown

GOFFSTOWN - There was one word that came from both sidelines after Friday night's barnburner between the Goffstown and Kingswood high school boys lacrosse teams.

Resilient.

If both teams are going to exceed the expectations that others may have for them this season, both squads are going to need to show that trait, and both coaches were happy to see it already this spring.

The Knights needed that resiliency, falling behind by seven goals early in the second quarter, after taking an early 2-1 lead. The Grizzlies rattled off a 7-0 run in the final six minutes of the first and then tacked on another goal off a weird deflection to make it 9-2 with more than 35 minutes remaining.

Kingswood got the lead down to four by halftime, and to two with eight minutes left in the third quarter, but Goffstown pushed it back to six going into the fourth.

The Grizzlies' lead was still four goals, 15-11, when TJ Smedick scored with 4:31 remaining, but the Knights still weren't going away. Kingswood got within one with 1:20 left before Goffstown ran out the clock on a 16-14 win.

"The grind that we put out there is something we’re trying to take forward for the rest of the season," Kingswood coach Mike Manning said. "A big difference from what we were last year, where we’d get down and we’d be down for the rest of the game.

"This crew showed a very different fight than what a lot of guys in the state expected out of us. I’m proud of that and I hope we can keep moving forward with that. We have the ability to play with most teams and upset a few that aren’t expecting it, and we’re trying to run with that."

For Goffstown (1-1), it was a much-needed bounce back from a season-opening loss to Alvirne on Tuesday.

"After our first game, we had a lot of shortcomings, but after the last couple of practices, we were preaching a lot of mental toughness," Goffstown coach Cory Allen said. "That showed (Friday). This game is very physical and it’s very fast, but it’s also mental. If you let it get to you, you can let it slip real quick."

It slipped for the Knights in the opening quarter, following the second of two goals by Serafin Agramonte - his first two varsity goals - that made it 2-1 Kingswood with 5:52 remaining in the first.

By the end of the quarter, it was 8-2 Goffstown, as the Grizzlies scored on all eight shots on goal and won 9 of 10 faceoffs, with the only loss coming on a procedural call on Smedick. For the game, Goffstown was 25 of 32 on faceoffs, with Smedick leading the way.

"Four goals and I would say 80-90 percent of the faceoffs," Allen said of Smedick. "You take that away, you walk away with maybe a different outcome. I tip my hat to TJ and the effort he put in to the outcome we had."

When a shot by Goffstown's Sam Chapman deflected off someone in front of the goal and found its way past Kingswood goalie Wyatt Brown, the Knights were in trouble.

But after getting some words of encouragement from his teammates and coaches, Brown was able to regroup, and after making eight saves in the second quarter, opened the door for Kingswood to come back.

"As a former goalie, that mental part of being able to pull yourself back up, because at the end of the day, it’s you against the rest of the team, you have to make those stops," Manning said. "In that first quarter, we as a defense weren’t doing well and he as a goalie was really struggling with trying to make those stops. He was able to pull it around, which shows a lot for his mental toughness and his ability to turn it over to that next page, make that next save, and continue to build."

With Brown making saves, the Knights got another spark midway through the quarter from Dom Alberto. The senior never broke stride while intercepting a Goffstown clear attempt near midfield and going in to score.

It was one of the few times Kingswood was able to beat Goffstown goalie Sean Cote in transition. The senior keeper, who finished with eight saves, was able to come up with stops when the Grizzlies needed him to to hang on to the lead.

"Sean Cote made big saves when we needed him to make big saves," Allen said. "Goals are obviously going to fall, and we can’t not expect that, but he stood big."

Throughout the second half, it felt like Goffstown was going to be able to stay just far in front enough to keep Kingswood from gaining a lot of momentum, especially after the lead got to four with under five minutes left.

But the Knights won a couple of faceoffs and scored two quick goals to make it 15-13, and after getting possession back, Kingswood took a timeout with 2:16 remaining.

The Knights got a good look out of the break, but Cote made a save and the Grizzlies tried to clear it. Instead, the Kingswood ride forced a turnover and Keller Peacock scored with 1:20 remaining to make it 15-14.

Goffstown won the ensuing faceoff, ran the clock down, and with Brown out of the goal to help defend, Smedick scored the final goal with 27 seconds left.

"To be only down by one with the last few seconds, to come back again was huge," Manning said. "I told the guys, there’s no such thing as a good loss, but the feeling, the overall realization that, even though on the scoreboard, we might look like we’re out of it, we have the ability to come back. Goffstown is a great team, they’ve got really good guys and a stellar goalie. The fact that we were able to come back, and we did it again, it proves a lot."