Bedford boys lacrosse needs four overtimes to get past Souhegan
Dodging towards net, and dodging raindrops, Bedford High School sophomore Ryan Toscano buried the fourth goal of the game to lift the Bulldogs boys lacrosse team.
BEDFORD – Dodging towards net, and dodging raindrops, Bedford High School sophomore Ryan Toscano buried the fourth goal of the game to lift the Bulldogs boys lacrosse team to a 4-3 victory in four overtimes over Souhegan, avenging last season’s quarterfinal loss.
The low scoring affair dragged through four extra frames without much action before Toscano finally found an opening to get a shot past Souhegan’s Alex Burnley.
“I think that’s our fourth overtime game of the year,” said Bedford coach Matt Guerard. “We’ve had luck winning one, we lost a couple, but we’re resilient all the way to the end and know if we’re patient, good things are going to happen.”
The first quarter ended with a 1-0 score as senior captain Brandon Howe scored his first of three goals. His lone tally in the second quarter gave the Bulldogs (10-6) a 2-0 lead at the half, and left the Sabers (8-6) looking for answers.
“I thought we were solid all night defensively,” said Guerard. “The first 24 minutes of the game, having a shutout on the board at halftime, proved how well we can play.
“We didn’t put together a good 12 minutes in the third quarter and fell behind and had to come back.”
That third quarter began with a tally from Souhegan senior defender Foster Burnley, who played both ends of the field as a long pole for the entire game. Senior Tyler Hall followed up with two third quarter goals of his own, including one while the Sabers were on the man-up.
After being shut out in that third frame, the Bulldogs scored the lone goal of the fourth quarter, with Howe getting on the board for the third time.
If the first 48 minutes of the game were a defensive battle, the next 14 were even more so.
Three overtimes went by without much action, and without each team getting much of a chance. One extra man opportunity at the end of the second overtime for Souhegan didn’t result in a scoring chance.
Bedford won the opening draw of the fourth overtime, and after a timeout, set up a play for Toscano to rush the net.
Alex Burnley made 12 saves for the Sabers while Bedford senior goalie Sean Tierney made 11 in the victory.
With one game left this season against Merrimack, the Bulldogs are hoping to win their first two consecutive games since May 11. Even with the tough schedule, which included a win over St. John’s Prep of the MIAA and a close loss to Pinkerton, the Bulldogs keep getting better when it counts.
“You have to believe that what you’re doing is going to work at some point, and that’s what happened today,” said Guerard. “We believed it was going to work and it eventually paid off.”
