CENTRAL NEW YORK – For many boys lacrosse programs, a championship is a culmination. But not at Jamesville-DeWitt.
Here, Section III titles are all but expected, part of a longer process that Red Rams players, coaches and fans hope leads to a place its has gone five times before – the top of the state.
Hungry after getting beat in the 2023 state final, J-D secured yet another sectional Class C title when it raced past Homer 18-4 in Wednesday’s title game at Fulton, which again put on display all of the team’s many qualities.
First among them is the ability to, at any time, put up goals in rapid succession to discourage an opponent. Against the Trojans, this came in the second quarter, when the Rams were already in front but still ran its lead to 12-1 with eight goals in that frame.
Then, whenever Homer did attack, it mostly got turned back by a defense that, due to all the possession on the other end, is well-rested and quite capable of making stops on a regular basis.
Nick Miller was largely responsible for keeping the ball with the Rams, winning 14 of the 18 face-offs he took and even earning a third-quarter goal.
Anchoring the attack, Sam Brazell dished out five assists, part of an effort that saw 11 different players put in goals, led by hat tricks from Alex Carolin and Andrew Laubenstein, who each added an assist.
Lucas Patchen, Graham Kesselring and Ben Porter landed two goals apiece. Seeing extended action late in the game, Sawyer McIntosh and Ryan Babikan each had one goal and one assist, with Braeden Baker and Eli Goldberg adding goals and assists credited to Lucas Brazell and Jackson King.
J-D reached the sectional final by handling no. 5 seed Carthage 15-4 in the semifinal round last Saturday at Fayetteville-Manlius Stadium, with matters again settled in the opening stages.
The no. 5 seed Comets had won six in a row, including a tense 7-6 quarterfinal win at New Hartford, but its defense gave up as many goals to the Rams in the first quarter as J-D sprinted out to a 6-0 advantage.
Continuing to roll, the Rams built a 14-2 lead through three periods. Carthage’s defense could do nothing against Brazell, who set a new career mark with eight goals to run his season total to 67.
Miller claimed 19 of 22 face-offs to set up many of Brazell’s scoring plays as Graham Kesselring scored twice and got three assists. Patchen had a goal and two assists, with Carolin getting one goal and one assist. Backer, Dan Diel and Brody Kesselring added goals as Anthony Guidone joined Miller in the assist column.
With Homer put away, it was on to the state tournament – specifically, to Saturday’s regional final at F-M against Section X’s Massena, the winner to face Honeoye Falls-Lima or Johnson City in Wednesday’s state semifinal at SUNY-Cortland.
