How the Benedictine lacrosse team made history with a dramatic playoff victory

As the seconds ticked away, it looked like Benedictine's lacrosse season might end on a disappointing note as Holy Innocents tried to play keep away — clinging to a one-goal lead Friday at BC.

But Cadet senior Andrew Trammell came to the rescue as the defensive middie delivered a hard check and dislodged the ball, picking up a turnover with 40 seconds left.

That set the stage for some offensive heroics as the Cadets moved the ball upfield behind a long run by Trey Zanone and a pair of timeouts by coach Dustin White. Senior Riley Wilson set up behind the net and found classmate Calvin Rose up front — and Rose delivered with a goal to tie the game at 10 with just 12 seconds remaining.

In the second overtime, Rose was at center stage once again as he set up on the left wing, took a pass from Jack Chandler and slung a shot into the back of the net for the winning goal as BC prevailed 11-10.

It was a historic win for the Cadets (14-4) who became the first team from Savannah to win a second round game in the GHSA playoffs. They are the first area team to ever advance to the state quarterfinals in a 32-team bracket. Now BC will hit the road to face Starr's Mill (15-2) at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday.

"We were watching them bleed the clock and I was thinking it might be over unless something crazy happened and then Andrew (Trammell) made the play of the game," White said. "Andrew started playing lacrosse in high school and this is his first year on varsity. He loves the game and is really strong and he made that play when we needed it."

Rose had a stellar performance with seven goals on the day. Jack Chandler netted a pair of goals, with an assist and Zanone and Avery Allen also scored for the Cadets, with Liam Hogan and Wilson dishing out assists.

Junior keeper Connor Desautels played well, with 11 saves on the day, including a pair of stops in overtime.

"It was a little scary in overtime, but I just tried to stay focused and take it one play at a time," said Desautels, also a standout wrestler who finished second in the Class 4A state tournament at 126 pounds. "A lot of us have been playing together for a long time and we've got great chemistry — I think that's our strength."

Rose and his teammates were celebrating achieving a goal that they set early in the season of reaching the Elite Eight.

"I was just thinking we need to get it in the back of the net," Rose said of his game-tying shot. "I knew Riley (Wilson) would get the ball to me, he's so shifty and strong. Once we tied it, I thought we had the momentum and would win it. Then Jack (Chandler) had the assist in overtime. This was a huge achievement for us — it's something we've been working toward for a long time."

Dennis Knight covers sports for the Savannah Morning News. Contact him at Dknight@savannahnow.com. Twitter: @DennisKnightSMN

This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Benedictine lacrosse team's dramatic playoff win makes history