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By Mike Flanagan
Hometown Weekly Sports Editor
Following a resounding 18-6 victory over rival Westwood in the semifinals that featured an historic 11-goal performance by junior attack-man Jack McCordic, Medfield High lacrosse travelled to Natick for the Division II Central/East finals against reigning champ Concord-Carlisle on Thursday.
With McCordic locked off by CC’s Charlie Cook for the majority of the day and senior captain Mike Hauptman (knee) still out of the lineup, the Warriors needed the rest of their offensive core to step up and produce in order to win the sectional title for the first time since 2017.
Junior attack-man Jimmy Cosolito (two goals, two assists), senior midfielder Brian Abely (two goals) and senior midfielder Tommy Gill (two goals) answered the call, as the trio helped Medfield fight off a furious fourth quarter rally by the Patriots to claim the sectional title with a 9-7 victory.
The rainy conditions caused both teams to start slowly on offense. Tommy Gill scored the lone goal of the first quarter with a dodge and finish at the crease to give Medfield a 1-0 lead at the end of one. Medfield began to find its rhythm on offense in the second quarter as goals from Abely (two) and Jake Sherman gave Medfield a 4-2 lead at halftime.
The Medfield High boys varsity lacrosse team celebrates following their 9-7 win over Concord-Carlisle on Thursday to claim the Division II Central/East title. Photos by Denise DePiero.
Man-up goals from Gill and Stephen O’Leary allowed Medfield to extend its lead to 6-2 early in the third. Jack Bowen responded for CC with a goal on the man-up to cut it to 6-3, but Cosolito netted a pretty one with a dodge to his left and a snipe upstairs across his body to make it 7-3 at the end of three.
The majority of the fourth quarter was dominated by CC. The Patriots rallied to tie the game seven with goals coming from Alexi Hunt, Bowen, and Derek Stout (two). Now tied and with their season on the line, Medfield was in dire need of a response. With 1:54 to play, Cosolito dodged from X and ripped a shot home up high to reclaim the lead at 8-7. After being locked off for the majority of the day, McCordic finally found found paydirt with a goal off the ensuing face-off victory by Connor DePiero, hammering the nail in the coffin and awarding Medfield the 9-7 sectional-clinching victory.
“7-3 is not safe against a team like Concord,” said Medfield head coach John Isaf on the win. “They play great defense, they’ve been here before; they were state semifinalists last year, so we knew they were going to punch back. I thought we showed some mental toughness. It’s tough to withstand a four-goal run and then have the presence and poise. We had some senior leaders step up and made plays when we needed to.”
On Monday, Medfield advanced to the Division II state championship game with a 21-5 victory over South sectional champ Sandwich in the semifinals. The Warriors will take on North champ Winchester.
For funny and insightful sports analysis, follow Mike Flanagan on his personal Twitter @fLAno0.
