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Senior Jacob Jurnovoy (14) makes a move against the Enfield defense. Photo by Marc Allard.
Things were not looking so good at the beginning of the season.
The Woodstock Academy boys’ lacrosse team suffered a one-sided loss to East Lyme and then was nipped by Waterford to open the season.
Fortunately, things have changed.
Woodstock won its third in a row last Thursday with a 14-1 decision over Enfield.
“It’s a long season,” said Centaurs coach Jason Tata. “It’s resilience. These guys could have easily rolled over, died and quit on the season after a tough game at East Lyme and a tough game here against Waterford. But we bounced back.”
That rebound began with a 13-3 win over the Norwich Tech/Windham Tech co-op, followed by a 16-5 win over E.O. Smith and then the victory over the Eagles.
Senior Zach Gessner had a lot to do with the three victories.
Gessner plays the “X”, the quarterback of the team if you will, operating behind the opponent’s net on offense and he has been an integral part of the Centaurs’ resurgence.
He assisted on nine goals in the win over the Warriors, followed that up with a pair against the Panthers and had seven more in the latest win over the Eagles.
But it’s not all fun and games behind the opponent’s net.
“It’s difficult and you get hit a lot more I feel like because I’m working close to the net, but it allows me to set my teammates up. This year, being a senior, it allows me to facilitate to the best of my ability,” Gessner said.
He’s been doing his job pretty well.
“He’s settling in,” Tata said. “He’s picking up where he left off from last year. He’s the quarterback back there, sees everything, and takes advantage when the defense starts focusing on him. Defense starts to pinch down on him a little, they see him try to attack from X, what does he do? Instead of trying to force anything, he looks up, finds his teammates up at the top. Assists, goals, he doesn’t care, he just wants the point.”
Not that he can’t score. He proved that against the Eagles when he made a move from behind the net and earned his teammates’ admiration when he sent the ball into the net with a backhand shot behind his back.
“I was planning it for the first couple of quarters,” Gessner said. “I saw myself coming across the crease and I was kind of wide open when my teammates were good. I just thought ‘I’m already coming across the crease, if I just increase the angle, I can go behind the back.’”
Jacob Jurnovoy was the biggest recipient of Gessner’s largesse as the fellow senior scored four times against Enfield, three of them were assisted by Gessner.
Lucas Theriaque added three goals and an assist while Jared Nielsen had two goals and an assist.
“All of our goals were great (versus Enfield). It was 1-2-3, extra pass, easy goal. We’re moving the ball really well, it’s not a one guy show, spreading the ball around beautifully,” Tata said.
In part, that could be because the chemistry is starting to come together.
The veterans of the team, like Gessner, went out on the recruitment trail before the season.
“We have a mix,” the senior said. “I’ve been playing with some of the guys for three or four years but some are brand new. I’m pretty good friends with all of them because we recruited them. This was the first year that we had to make cuts in my time here at Woodstock. It allowed for a more competitive atmosphere.”
That competitive atmosphere has led to some better chemistry, not only in the front, but in the back
The defense has also played well for the Centaurs.
In the three-game win streak, Woodstock has allowed only nine goals while the Centaurs offense has produced 43 tallies.
“Our defense is playing out of its minds right now,” Tata said. “There is great chemistry between the guys back there. We’re shifting guys around every day. So (against Enfield Michael) Burns played close for us, (Jacob) Lizotte played up high and it worked out for us. It’s the chemistry. It’s (Evan) Roy being the leader back there, it’s all of them. We’re getting quality minutes across the board.”
Against E.O. Smith Gessner scored four times and did add a couple of assists in the win over the Panthers.
Nielsen had a first half hat trick and also added a pair of assists and Jurnovoy chipped in with a pair of goals and three assists.
Woodstock clung to a slim one goal lead at the end of the first quarter, raised it to a three-goal difference at the half and doubled that by the end of the third quarter. The Centaurs finished it up by outscoring their hosts, 6-1, in the final quarter.
Henry Wotton added two goals for Woodstock. But, like Tata said, it’s a long season and a three-game win streak goes only so far. Fortunately, his players realize that.
Marc Allard
Director of Sports Information
The Woodstock Academy
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