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By TIM IRVING
Fairport boys lacrosse coach Mike Torrelli is not fond of the semifinal round of Class A Tournament.
“It is so hard. Sometimes the energy isn’t there…I don’t know what it is but it just seems to be this round.”
The Red Raiders will play for their third straight Class A title on Wednesday after an 8-7 victory over second-seeded McQuaid.
The Knights got after it immediately, defenseman and face-off man Hunter Smith won the opening draw and fed Chris Woodard, seven seconds into the game, for a 1-0 lead.
Chase Rizzo and Kyle Gould scored the next two to give Fairport the lead.
The teams traded goals the rest of the way. Woodard fed Vincenzo Giangreco to tie the game at 3-3 at halftime.
There is a familiarity with these teams, the players all know one another and they played last Saturday, with Fairport winning 7-4.
“We gotta turn around and play ‘em again and that makes in more of a challenge and they’re good and I felt coming in that this would be a one-goal game,” Torrelli said.
The Red Raiders took a two-goal lead on the first of two goals from freshman Mitchell Monte.
But the Knights rallied again as Paul Chiariello went right and fired inside left.
Tied at 6-6 in the fourth, Chiariello came around the net to give McQuaid at 7-6 advantage.
Fairport drew a penalty and on the man-up, Jake Koonmen tied the game 7-7.
With over a minute to go, the Red Raiders held a long possession. Junior Jackson Monte, who plays primarily behind the net as a feeder, zipped a shot in from the top for an 8-7 lead.
“They went into a zone and we tried to overload the zone and Jackson rotated out top. It looked like, from my angle, that the goalie got screened a little bit but it was a good shot, down low to the corner,” Torrelli said.
Face-off specialist Joey Giggie won his match-up and Fairport got the ball but couldn’t advance it past midfield and McQuaid got a chance.
Senior goalie McLean Ralston made the save on Chiariello but the rebound was scooped up by John Harding, who fed Woodard and Ralston made the point-blank save.
“When they’re in tight, you wanna match their stick, see what they’re doing and soak their shots, “ Ralston said. “We had pressure on their gloves and both shots were right in to me.”
Fairport is playing for their third straight Class A title, once interrupted by the pandemic wiping out the 2020 season. For the second straight year, the Raiders face rival Pittsford, who they beat in the season-opener 8-7.
“I gotta talk to my AD because we gotta stop playing them the first game and the last game every year, it’s starting to get old, “ Torrelli said, laughing.
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