The Eagles become the second MIAA A Conference team to claim three straight championships, joining Calvert Hall.
Seconds away from elimination in the first round and only one goal better in the semifinals, two-time defending champion McDonogh boys lacrosse sweated its way to Friday’s Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association A Conference championship game against No. 1 Boys’ Latin.
The sweat added a steely resilience to the No. 3 Eagles, who gained separation from the Lakers with a dominant third quarter to claim a 14-12 win at packed Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis.
Junior Brendan Millon (three goals, three assists) and senior Luke Miller (three goals, two assists) led the attack, senior goalie Aidan Seibel made 13 stops and the Eagles took hold of the title with three straight goals at the end of the third quarter to take a 13-8 advantage.
McDonogh (15-3) won its sixth conference title and became the second program to win three straight crowns, matching Calvert Hall’s work from 2017 to 2019.
“We’ve been tested throughout this whole year — a lot of ups and downs — two losses, tight games, coming back from two within a minute. This team is battle-tested and we’ve seen it all,” Miller said. “We got in the locker room [at halftime] regrouped, came together as a unit really it was just like, ‘We got one last go together and we’re going to make it count.’ That’s what we did.”
Over the past two years, the Eagles earned one-goal wins over the Lakers in the semifinals on their way to winning the title. This year, McDonogh had to overcome a two-goal deficit against Loyola Blakefield with less than one minute left in the quarterfinals, getting a tying goal from Andrew Kasten with four seconds left before he scored the game-winner in the second overtime. Then came a stern semifinal test from upstart Archbishop Spalding that ended in a 10-9 win.
Leading 10-8 with 3:30 left in the third quarter, the Eagles finally found some playoff breathing room. Sophomore Hunter Metz, another huge contributor on attack with four goals, scored two a little more than one minute apart. Miller made it 13-8 with 2:06 left.
Miller opened the fourth-quarter scoring to give McDonogh a five-goal advantage that remained until the latter stages, when the Lakers scored the last three goals in the final two minutes.
“It’s almost surreal, an incredible feeling,” McDonogh coach Andy Hilgartner said. “These guys have worked for a really long time and I’m super grateful for the leadership we got from our seniors. [Boys’ Latin’s] a great program and they push us to be better, they really do. But I’m grateful to God for our team and the guys we have in the locker room — it’s just an amazing feeling. It’s hard to put into words.”
Boys’ Latin (14-3) earned the top seed with a 9-1 conference mark in the regular season with its only blemish coming in a 12-10 home loss to the Eagles. On Friday, the Lakers had their moments, including a three-goal run that provided a 6-5 advantage midway through the second quarter. But it turned out to be their only lead as the Eagles responded with two goals from Metz and another from Eli Schaller to claim an 8-6 halftime lead.
Matt Higgins led the Lakers with three goals and one assist, Spencer Ford scored three goals and faceoff specialist Parker Hoffman was strong in a good matchup against sophomore Ciaran Sweeney. Boys’ Latin coach Brian Farrell credited the Eagles’ execution and was proud of his team’s season-long commitment.
“The season has been one for the memory bank for me because we had such a great group of kids,” Farrell said. “Good quality men and there’s 21 of them ready to go on to the next level, whereever that may be. This just sucks because they care so much and they wanted it so bad and they worked so hard since November to be here.”
The country’s finest league didn’t disappoint with another stellar season filled with quality competition and memorable storylines.
The first week of conference play showed the balance with two overtime thrillers — Boys’ Latin edging Calvert Hall, 11-10, and Archbishop Spalding getting past Loyola Blakefield, 8-7. After failing to qualify for the playoffs last year, Spalding finished in second place under first-year coach Evan Hockel to earn a first-round bye in the postseason. Loyola’s first-year coach Will Haus also led his team to a postseason berth.
In the end, the teams projected to be playing on the season’s last day — McDonogh and Boys’ Latin opened the season as The Baltimore Sun’s Nos. 1 and 2 ranked teams, respectively — made the big game, and McDonogh’s championship experience once again won out.
Hilgartner said the Eagles’ tough playoff route to Friday’s championship played a big role in their fine performance.
“I think it gave us a little greater will to win and that ‘never stop believing’ feeling that we can win,” he said. “We preach resiliency all year long, no matter the situation. Tonight, I think we just answered and as many times they hit us we hit them back. They pushed us to be a better program and they’ll always challenge us.”
McDonogh — 5-3-5-1 — 14
Boys’ Latin — 3-3-3-3 — 12
Goals: M — Miller 3, Hahn 1, Millon 3, Metz 4, Schaller 2, Resnick; BL — Ford 3, Higgins 3, Insley, Sydnor 2, McDonald, White, Barnes.
Assists: M — Miller 2, Hahn 2, Millon 3; BL — Higgins, Insley, White, Kenney, Parker, Benoit, Chan.
Saves M — Seibel 13; BL — Ohnmacht 5
