QO Boys Best Watkins Mill in Battle of Lax Unbeatens

Quashing any doubts, Quince Orchard boys’ lacrosse cemented their standing among the county’s elite on Thursday with another emphatic win—this time against Watkins Mill, MCPS’s only other unbeaten team.

Both squads boasted high-scoring offenses heading into Thursday: Watkins Mill averaged more than 12 goals in its first six games, while Quince Orchard’s 17 points per game has blown all its opponents away. But the Cougars also brought a far stingier defense that stifled Watkins Mill’s attack while their offense erupted in the second half for a 14-2 win.

The loss sullied the Wolverines’ surprising 6-0 start, those six wins already one more than the three previous seasons combined.

"If we were a bicycle last year, we’re a motorcycle now—and they’re a Ferrari. We’ve come a long way, but a game like this shows us how far we have to go," said Coach Randy Thompson. "We’ve got some good athletes, we’ve got kids who want to compete. We’re not on their level is what it comes down to. That’s not a bad thing; it’s something to aspire to."

Watkins Mill wasn’t without its chances. Less than a minute into the game, Tommy Drury found fellow senior Henry Ludgate a few yards from the net. Ludgate whipped a quick shot five-hole, but Quince Orchard goalie John Barkanic went to his knees to stuff the point-blank shot.

Barkanic’s counterpart between the pipes—Watkins Mill sophomore Eole Lake— staved off four shots in the early going before Quince Orchard broke the scoreless tie with 4:35 left in the first quarter. The second goal came four minutes later; the third, three minutes into the second quarter.

As Quince Orchard’s defense asserted itself, Watkins Mill’s offense suffered through a rash of turnovers and imprecise play. The Wolverines managed a pair of quality shots in the first half’s final minute, but Barkanic turned them both away to preserve Quince Orchard’s 3-0 lead at the break.

The Cougars burst the floodgates open in the third quarter with the return of leading scorers Eric Simon, Sean Holliday, Andrew Korol and Eli Tolstoi, all of whom Coach Michael Kowalick had benched for the first half for violating team rules.

The second half started with another point-blank save by Watkins Mill’s sophomore goalie, but the Cougars’ prolific goal-scorers didn’t relent, pouring in six goals over the ensuing seven minutes. The Cougars tacked on two more in the third quarter’s waning moments—one of which came with less than a second on the clock—to swell the lead to 11-0. Simon, Holliday, Korol and Tolstoi scored all but one of Quince Orchard’s 11 second-half goals.

"They’ve been doing this to everyone all year long," said Thompson, Watkins Mill’s coach. "… We got a step slow, they got under our skin a little bit and we started pointing fingers. In a game like this, you relax or you get frustrated for two, three minutes, and five or six goals go in on you in the blink of an eye."

Watkins Mill sophomore Shane Soghomonian broke the shutout a minute into the fourth quarter, then added another goal in mop-up time.

It was the Cougars' defense that made the difference, Thompson said, especially defenseman Marty Heyn and long-stick midfielder Stuart Nystrom.

"Those guys, they’re like stickum. They control their stick, they throw good checks, they’re in good body position," he said. "They make it hard to pass, they make it hard to run."

While the Cougars’ attack has put up gaudy numbers, that stout defense is just as vital to Quince Orchard’s bid for a third consecutive regional final, said Coach Mike Kowalick.

"Defensively we were very strong. We pressured the ball all game, and that’s what we plan to do in every game," he said.

Quince Orchard faces one-win Einstein on April 27, their next step in the march to redeem the 2009 and 2010 regional final defeats.

"Our expectations are as high as they can go," Kowalick said.

Expectations for Watkins Mill are harder to pin down. Thursday was a bellwether game for the Wolverines: Though they raced out to a 6-0 start—outscoring their opponents 74 to 18—it came against teams that have combined for seven wins and 30 losses this season.

On Thursday, the Cougars exposed the Wolverines’ defensive weaknesses and exploited their big-game inexperience. But while Watkins Mill was rattled by Quince Orchard’s third-quarter scoring spree, crucial lessons were learned right away, Soghomonian said.

"We found out that we know how to come out and be intense, and that we need to become more mentally tough and stay in the game more," he said. "The intensity went down and I think the guys got a little tired mentally and physically. We kind of let it down a little, but we began to bring it back up."

The Wolverines get their chance to bounce back with another big game this afternoon at Clarksburg. The Coyotes also have only one loss on the season, also a 14-2 drubbing by Quince Orchard.

"The good thing about a game like this is we don’t have time to dwell on it," Thompson said.

Scoring Summary

Quince Orchard

• Sean Holliday 4 goals, 1 assist

• Eric Simon 3 goals, 1 assist

• Andrew Korol 2 goals

• Jack Harris 2 goals

• Taylor Segreti 1 goal

• Carson Stewart 1 goal

• Eli Tolstoi 1 goal

• Joe Faucett 1 assist

• Spencer Hystrom 1 assist

Watkins Mill

• Shane Soghomonian 2 goals

• Tommy Drury 1 assist