The Walpole Rebels Boys Lacrosse team earned their first win of the season on a brisk Monday evening against the Braintree Wamps, 7-1. Both teams headed into Monday’s game not knowing what to expect from the opposition: both teams had lost their first two games and both were eager to get on the right track. However, from the begining of the game, it was clear that the Rebels were the superior team.
The first half was all Rebels, dominating on both offense and defense. Sophomore goalie Andrew Blood made some spectacular saves early on which allowed Rebel defenders to get acclimated to the speed of the game and recover without the Rebels falling behind. With strong defense backing them up, the Rebel attackers were able to push the tempo and disrupt Braintree’s game. And as the halftime whistle sounded, the Rebels found themselves up 4-0, with two goals from sophomore Sean Donnelly, one goal from junior Steve Thulin, and one from sophomore Mark Niden. Thulin played well in his first game back from injury, although his presence on the field is not always seen on the stat sheet.
Unfortunately for the Wamps, the second half was more of the same for the Rebels. Blood and the veteran defenders held the line with strong play, only allowing one goal with only a few minutes remaining. As for the offense, the Rebels scored three more times— Donnelly scored one more, as well as senior Patrick Baker and freshman Seamus Ford. Ford has turned a lot of heads this season, but not just with his goal-scoring ability. Ford also laid down a solid hit on Monday, something you do not see too often from freshmen at the Varsity level, let alone three games into the season. When the game ended, the scoreboard read 7-1 in favor of the Rebels. Walpole won their first game of the season, but they certainly are not finished yet. “We want to keep improving every day, every game,” said Thulin. “As long as we keep moving forward, we will continue to get better and win games.”
The Rebels look to their next game at Natick on Wednesday. With one win under their belt, surely the Rebels will be hungry for more victories. “We want to succeed, and as long as we want to win, we will,” said Thulin.
