By Meghan Foley
Hometown Weekly Staff
Last Friday, the boys’ lacrosse team played their final game of the regular season at home against the Westwood Wolverines. Last season, Walpole won the matchup 10–9. Prior to this year’s game, Walpole was the 9th seed in D2 and Westwood was the 10th.
The Timberwolves struck first with a goal by Mike Conners about four minutes in, before the Wolverines squeaked in two goals in the final minute of the quarter. Westwood scored again shortly into the second quarter, but suddenly down 3–1, the Timberwolves went on to score four goals. First was Davis Potter, then Jack Cotter assisted by Jack Webb. Webb scored the next goal only 16 seconds later, and Conners followed up with his second goal about half a minute later. Westwood put away one more goal before the end of the half, which Walpole came out of leading 5–4.
Dillon Needham put away a goal in the first minute of the third, and the Wolverines scored two minutes later. Webb scored with a straight-on shot assisted by Cotter, and Needham scored within the same minute, assisted by Zack Mattera. Only a few minutes later, Mattera scored his own goal with an assist by Conners.
The Timberwolves entered the fourth quarter up 9–5, but did not score in the final quarter as the Wolverines crept up the scoreboard until they were within one goal with six and a half minutes left. However, Walpole was able to hold them off until the end of the game, including a save by goalie Anthony Hockman with just under four minutes left, and they came away with the win, 9–8.
Although the final rankings have not been published at the time this article was written, the Timberwolves’ 9th-seed position before the win over Westwood means they would have qualified for the postseason, which has begun this week, even if they’d lost. Last year, Walpole was the 8th seed and made it to the final eight, where they were knocked out by Billerica Memorial 11–6, who was the first seed and went on to win the title. Billerica is contending for the top seed once again, so they will be a dangerous opponent once again if the Timberwolves meet them in the playoffs.
Timberwolves’ schedules can be accessed online at: arbiterlive.com and power rankings and brackets can be found at miaa.net/game-day/tournament-central.
