By Justin Vigil-Zuniga
Signal Sports Writer
Saugus boys’ lacrosse destroyed Cate in their second-round Division 2 playoff matchup.
The Centurions had six players with two or more goals and were led by senior Charlie Bland, who netted six in the team’s ninth win in a row.
Both teams entered Friday’s contest with first-round byes, making most think this would be a somewhat close game.
The game was intense to start. Cate tried to set a physical tone for the game. Saugus had no issue matching the tone while still playing their game and quickly went up 3-0 in three minutes.
Senior Ryan Maycott owned the face-off game and kept force-feeding Saugus possession.
The Centurions were in perfect sync. The team kept making the right passes and finding the open man en route to their 23-goal win.
“On and off the field we can basically read each other’s minds,” said Maycott.
Maycott and the smothering Centurion defense were key to obtaining and possessing the ball.
Bland and the high-flying Saugus offense did the rest to score.
“I feel like we’re a high-functioning offense,” said Bland. “A lot of us have chemistry playing four years together. We have a brotherhood and it shows out on the field.”
Kyle Emmons and Tommy Forrand finished just behind Bland with four-goal days.
Saugus never let up and were owners of a 19-1 lead heading into halftime.
“All foot’s on the gas, no brakes,” said Maycott. “We have to manage quarters, hopefully we make it to the [championship] and take that one down, too.”
Starters slowly started to disappear in the second half but the intensity never left the field. The Centurions’ bench displayed how deep this Saugus team really is and held Cate to another one-goal half.
The bench played the same hard-nosed defense through picking off passes, stripping balls and countering hard on ground balls.
The Centurions have started their postseason campaign with a huge win. They look like a team on a mission and are doing a lot of little things right to ensure they get to their destination.
“It’s the start of something big, we’re hoping,” said Saugus head coach Joseph Viola. “So it’s all momentum from here.”
The Centurions have not lost since mid-March and most of their wins have not been close. The competition will start getting a little steeper but the team has to feel good winning a second round playoff game the way they did.
Saugus will now gear up for a third-round matchup with the winner of Redondo Union and Culver City. The Centurions will likely head to the winner of that game on Monday as their postseason continues.
