Taking on Darien, the second-ranked boys high school lacrosse team in the country, you cant afford to make mental mistakes. Wilton, whose defense allowed just five goals in the first two games of the season, was decimated by such errors Thursday afternoon. Darien took advantage of every Warrior miscue and pulled away for a 14-7 victory.
The Warriors came out of the gate with a great defensive game plan and were able to keep the Darien offensive machine in check. When senior captain Michael Francia cut the Darien lead to 3-2 in the 1st quarter with an incredible diving shot, the Warriors seemed poised to take the game to the wire.
But in a game so dependent on possession, Wilton simply could not keep it. The Warriors could not hold onto the ball and could not pick the ball up off the turf. Darien dominated the ground ball category, 29-17. Four first half penalties also killed any momentum Wilton gained.
"Mental errors stopped us from doing what we wanted to do today," Wilton head coach John Wiseman said. "They did not really beat us six-on-six in the offensive zone. They beat us in transition, with a man advantage, and on face-offs. You can't expect to beat a team with the mental errors we had today."
The more possessions Darien got, the quicker they started to score. The explosiveness of the Blue Wave offense was showcased in the third quarter when attacker Ben Preston netted three goals in one minute and 10 seconds.
Junior Chris Nugent led the Warriors with three goals and an assist. Wilton goalkeeper Sam Somers started the day with an impressive 11 saves in the first half, but Darien racked up 43 shots on the afternoon. Somers finished with 18 saves on 32 shots on goal.
"I tell you what -- if this were June 5th or 6th instead of April 14th, I'd be worried," Wiseman said. "It's early and to be honest I'm glad we played them early so we can be done with it and move on. These 16 games are practice. It's the playoffs we want to win."
Wilton will endure another early-season test when it travels to Glenside, Pa., to take on La Salle College High School on Saturday for a 3 p.m. game.
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