Benjamin boys lacrosse wins state title in thriller over Community School of Naples

Benjamin boys lacrosse has its first state-sanctioned state title in program history, defeating the Community School of Naples, 11-10.

In a game that came down to the wire, Benjamin saw a three-goal lead in the fourth quarter narrowed to just one – but an offsides call gave Benjamin the ball with just 30 seconds left.

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The Bucs closed it out with one final possession, piling on top of Tatum Little in goal as the final whistle etched this particular iteration of Benjamin lacrosse into the annals of school history.

“It’s awesome,” head coach Peter Cordrey said. “They’re great kids. They’ve worked really hard. And I think the game was typical of us gutting things out. Out of all the games we played this year, that was the toughest one.”

The Buccaneers have struggled with starting fast in games, but not on Saturday.

Thanks to Ford Cash and Matthew Null, Benjamin jumped to a 2-0 lead in the first 57 seconds of the state title matchup against the Seahawks.

“We might have started too fast,” Cordrey joked.

After Community School of Naples scored two of their own in rapid succession, vibrant fans – including a full showing by the hometown Seahawks faithful – cheered on the likes of what had all the signs of the title-game barn-burner.

“We knew that they slough in on the crease a lot from our dodges,” Alex Ponchock said. “So we were just thinking of spreading them out, playing open, seeing what their defense gives us. And we capitalized on it a lot.”

Despite seven combined goals in the first nine minutes of the game, a run of offense capped off by Alex Ponchock’s eye-popping solo effort, both defenses settled in during the second quarter.

There would be just three goals scored between the teams in the ensuing 17 minutes, a quiet spell ended by Jayden Vega’s third-quarter score.

On defense, both Little in goal and Hutch Gumbinner in coverage were among the most pivotal members.

Gumbinner, a junior defender, was given the unenviable task of covering Cal Wyatt, the Seahawks attacker that was coming off an eight-goal performance in an overtime victory over St. Andrew’s in the semifinals.

When previewing the game, Cordrey flirted with the idea of mixing up man and zone coverages to prevent Wyatt from an encore performance.

As it turns out, Gumbinner was able to shut down the talented lefty in man coverage, tracking him throughout the match.

“He’s a great kid,” Gumbinner said. “Strong lefty. I’ve just got to play a strong hand and hope he doesn’t beat me.”

Consider it a mission accomplished.

“I couldn’t have done it without my goalie and the rest of the defense,” Gumbinner said. “We just played in unison and as one heartbeat.”

And speaking of men on missions, Little’s performance in net was solid all game – but his play elevated to the next level in the fourth quarter.

The sophomore goalie saved two point-blank shots in the final five minutes of the game, including one off his stick, and he was able to launch the ball immediately downfield to open up the Bucs offense in transition after the second save in that sequence.

In just his second year of varsity play, Little didn’t endure the gut-wrenching loss two years ago in the finals. But that doesn’t mean this one wasn’t just as special to him as the others.

“Better than anything in the world I’ve ever experienced,” Little said of how he felt after the title win. “And especially to do it with all of my best friends and best buddies in the whole world, it’s amazing.”

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Benjamin boys lacrosse wins state title over Community School of Naples