Florida Lacrosse News on Substack 02/24/2025
Welcome to today's post!
In this issue . . .
A weekend of sending messages
Benjamin Boys finally slay their dragon
Naples Invaded by Army, Mercer
St Thomas Girls take a 1-1 road trip
Monday’s Schedule
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#TAFTAG
#LayOffTheRefs
#FloridaRising
#LacrosseFanandDamnProudOfIt
#StopYellingWard
#AcknowledgeFloridaLacrosse
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Saint John Paul Boys are looking to fill an open date due to game cancellations. March 20th-22nd is the window for one game.
Contact SJP head coach Andrew Bolger at abolger@sjpii.net if you are interested.
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Coaches, if you need to fill an open game date, let me know at lee@floridalacrossenews.com and I’ll post it here!
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Benjamin Boys 17-11 over Saint Andrew’s
In a night of great matchups, the biggest was the annual (and sometimes more than once) Saint Andrew’s-Benjamin Boys game. Played in front of a big crowd, on one of those crisp, cool nights we usually don’t have this time of year, the Bucs finally ended the streak . . . kind of felt like when The Undertaker’s WrestleMania streak ended, but just a few years less.
Benjamin’s lacrosse records on MaxPreps begins in 2008, so I can’t go back further, but that year saw them go 10-6 in the Club status and amazingly they lost three times to Palm Beach Gardens and twice to Central Boulevard neighbor Dwyer. The next year it was 11-4 and again lost twice to Dwyer and once to PBG. It kind of gives you the feel for how the area has shifted over the years . . .
In 2011, they ran the table at 22-0 and that was also their Club state championship. In 2012, it was their first year in Varsity status, and their first matchup with the Scots, a 16-7 loss that was turned from a 4-4 halftime by one of the greatest 12 minutes I have seen anyone play, as the Scots ripped off 9 goals in the 3rd at the Orange Bowl Classic behind Connor Whipple’s 9 goals and a loaded SA offense.
Then the streak started to pile up.
2013 - 11-8 regular season and 14-3 in the FHSAA semifinal as SA played almost a perfect game
2014 - an 8-7 loss in a year they went to the FHSAA finals
2015 - an 11-5 loss
2016 - a 13-7 loss
2017 - a 16-6 home loss in a game FLN streamed as a live broadcast
2018 - a 15-6 loss
2019 - a 6-5 loss in 2 OTs
2020 - Covid cancelled the game
2021 - no game scheduled
2022 - 2 games - a 10-3 loss in the regular season and a 9-7 loss in the state semifinals
2023 - a 15-13 loss
2024 - Benjamin wins the state title but still falls 16-10 in the regular season
12 straight . . . and it wasn’t mediocre teams that Benjamin put forward. Just one of those bizarre things sports can conjure up.
I can officially bury this story line as of Friday night.
The first quarter started out like we might see Same Story, Next Year, as the Scots took the 4-2 lead behind their dynamic duo of Dylan Faison and Nick Testa. The SA defense was luring Benjamin’s ball carriers into the middle of their zone and sliding quickly, turning the ball over. But a 6-1 run in the second turned the game around and it was pretty much a steady Benjamin lead the entire rest of the way as Tatum Little lit it up in goal when a big save was needed, including one that I wish I had on film.
Dylan Furshman showed up big at the faceoff, in that run, although I have to say SA battled pretty well at the faceoffs; Dylan is just such a force multiplier for an offense that he’ll always make a difference in the long run.
One thing I paid a lot of attention to was when Faison and Jake Ivancevic went head-to-head, with each showing why they are among the top players in the country. It’s just one of those ‘game inside a game’ sub plots that are so great to watch.
Eventually, Benjamin’s offense really clicked in, and what makes it so difficult to play against them is that there’s not only a lot of options with the players, but also the skill set they bring to the table. At some point, one of the options starts to win a matchup and it snowballs. Jayden Vega struggled early with his inside power game as SA doubled quickly and forced turnovers, but over time the physicality started to act like a boxer’s body punches and he still put up 5 goals. Jack Kelleher’s shooting ability forces overcompensation towards him but give him a second and the ball finds the net. Alex Ponchock scored the quietest 4 goals I can remember.
I don’t have the exact stats since SA hasn’t posted those yet, but while Faison and Testa converted a number of times, the supporting cast was kind of quiet and that seems to have been one of the differences Friday night. If we see a rematch in Naples, which could well happen (as well as in that obscure Palm League that I can’t currently define for you), it will be important to see if that changes. It becomes easier to focus on the two stars if the supporting cast can’t make the defense focus on them more.
One thing I absolutely loved about the game was the aftermath. It was so refreshing to see the respect the kids on both sides had for each other, in a world where it seems trash talking after a game has become far too prevalent. Regardless of which team the parents rooted for, they should be proud of that more than anything that night.
I guess Benjamin can feel like Brock Lesner for a night but also remember that rematches loom large as a possibility too and that they don’t crown the champion until May!
Thanks for a great evening kids!