See more photos by Chris Cecere here
By TIM IRVING
Webster Thomas boys lacrosse coach Rob Ruller doesn’t have to look far to find a someone to step up in a big game.
He lives in the same house with him.
The Titans knocked off six-time defending Sectional champion Victor, 10-7, to advance to the Class B Final at Canandaigua on Tuesday. The Titans are the only team to beat the Braves this season.
Cade Spencer started the scoring for the Titans. The senior, who is also one of the hockey team’s leading scorer, is playing at Geneseo next year.
The Titans won the ensuing face off and called time out. On the restart, the ball went to Ethan Ruller, who bounced off a couple of checks and flipped the ball in backhand.
It was the first goal for the senior Ruller who is heading to Cornell after a year at prep school. You see, the coach’s son is the Titans’ goalie.
“That’s years and years of backyard lacrosse and our offense played great, that’s just one goal out of the ten but it felt good, “ the younger Ruller said with a smile that will be on his face for quite awhile.
Determined not to let it hang over them, the Blue Devils won the next face off and Pax Marshall scored the only goal of the first quarter for Victor.
The only goal of the first half for Victor.
Spencer took advantage of a broken defenseman’s stick and scored to put Thomas up 3-1 after one.
Evan Pashalidis and David Petz scored second quarter goals for a 5-1 lead at halftime. Titans face off specialist Brendan Smallcomb held his own against Logan Callahan, the Victor senior headed for Johns Hopkins.
Rob Ruller said, “He wanted to be an offensive player and I said, the only role I can give you is face off so, practice that craft.”
Callahan started the second half quickly, ten seconds in, hitting Cal Lambert for a goal.
24 seconds later, after another Callahan win, Alex Seiler cut the lead to 5-3.
Ryan Prine, who like Seiler, is heading to Roberts Wesleyan next season, fired home a goal to stop the run.
The next five minutes went by scoreless until Steven Zielke made it 7-3.
In all, Victor out-scored Thomas 4-3 in the third, with Spencer completing his hat trick.
Pashalidis netted his second of the game and that seemed to take the air out of the ball.
That and Eli Adams’ defensive work on the West Point-bound Lambert.
“Cal’s a stud, he’s been balling out all season but so is Eli,” Ethan Ruller said of the junior three-sport star. “He’s a horse. I expect him to go on to big time things in college.”
Prine scored his second of the game with 3:45 left for the Titans’ final goal. Callahan and Thomas Gravino scored the final two for Victor.
Ruller became Thomas’ all-time leader in career saves during the game and his coach and father beams with pride.
“He studies as much as the coaches do. He had over six hours watching film on Victor and that says what he is, “ Rob Ruller says. “Cornell is really excited to get a nice kid whose gonna work hard, no matter what his role is and that’s what I’m proud about.”
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