Until last season, the boys lacrosse rivalry between Severna Park High and Broadneck had been a one-sided affair. The Bruins ended nearly a decade of frustration with a victory last spring.
Down three goals at halftime Friday, Broadneck was again facing another bitter defeat. But, on a rainy night in Cape St. Claire, the Bruins did not relent.
No. 11 Broadneck dominated the final 24 minutes to claim a 9-6 victory over the ninth-ranked Falcons in a battle for first place in the Anne Arundel County league. Senior midfielder Ryan Salazar and Tanner Boone each scored three goals for the Bruins.
Broadneck (10-0 overall, 6-0 Anne Arundel) accounted for the final six tallies in regulation to move into position for a second straight regular season league championship. Senior attack Jackson Shaw added two scores and an assist.
“I dug in on my offense,” Bruins coach Jeff McGuire said of his halftime adjustments. “I was loving the way our defense was playing and our goalie was playing fantastic and our faceoff guy was dominating. The one thing that was left out was us dominating on offense.”
Salazar broke a 6-6 deadlock, finding a gap in Severna Park’s defense and ripping a shot into the net with 5 minutes, 44 seconds left in regulation.
“I just saw a little hesitation,” Salazar said. “As I kept creeping in, no one was sliding so I just took the shot. I trusted it and it went in.”
Della and Boone added insurance goals for Broadneck, which extended its regular season winning streak to 22 games, dating back to last season. Last spring, the Bruins posted their first victory over Severna Park since 2015 with a 10-8 victory, ending Severna Park’s 61-game win streak (including playoffs) against Anne Arundel foes.
The Falcons (9-3, 5-1 Anne Arundel), who got payback in the league championship a few weeks later before surging to a sixth consecutive state championship, had momentum early Friday. Ryan LaRocque, Tucker Moran and Jack Fish each tallied in a 3-0 first quarter assault.
Broadneck pulled one back with 2:27 left in the opening quarter, with Salazar scoring his first goal of the evening. Nolan Grizzle replied a minute later for the Falcons, but Shaw cut the deficit to two with a goal 16 seconds before the end of the first.
Andrew Myers found the back of the net for Severna Park in the second quarter, advancing the Falcon lead to 5-2. The lead was 6-3 after Daniel Stack’s goal with about eight minutes remaining in the third.
It was Severna Park’s final score of the evening. Salazar, Shaw and Boone scored to pull Broadneck even headed into the final 12 minutes.
Boone’s goal came with five seconds left in the third on a behind-the-back shot, assisted by junior midfielder Tyler Hicks.
“At halftime we were talking about one word: discipline,” Boone said, “We’ve harped on it the whole season. We went out there, we knew what we could do and we did it.”
“In the first half we played excellent,” said Severna Park lacrosse coach Dave Earl, whose team lost for just the second time in their last 54 in Anne Arundel County regular season play. “We took care of the ball offensively, we shot well. Defensively we were lights out. We stopped their threats.”
Barring an upset, the Falcons and Bruins will meet for the county championship in a couple of weeks. Severna Park avenged last year’s regular season loss with a 13-6 victory before going on to claim the Class 3A state title.
Broadneck’s state bid fell short with a loss to Montgomery County’s Churchill in the 4A final.
The Bruins hope Friday’s victory is the stepping stone for a different ending next month.
“That is just breathing confidence into them rolling into next week and rolling into county championships and playoffs,” McGuire said. “Just having a backpack full of confidence.”
NO. 11 BROADNECK 9, NO. 9 SEVERNA PARK 6
Severna Park 4 1 1 0 — 6
Broadneck 2 0 4 3 — 9
GOALS: Severna Park - Ryan LaRocque, Tucker Moran, Jack Fish, Nolan Grizzle, Andrew Myers, Daniel Stack; Broadneck - Ryan Salazar 3, Jackson Shaw 2, Tanner Boone 3 Ryan Della
ASSISTS: Broadneck - Brooks Chatlos, Shaw, Tyler Hicks
SAVES: Severna Park- Ashby Shepherd 5; Broadneck - Colin Gray 14
