Penalties don't keep Lakeside from win

Lakeside was picking up more penalties than goals as its final lacrosse game of the season headed toward halftime Wednesday.

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Rival Greenbrier was hanging on, but the Panthers scored twice in the final minute of the second quarter and went on to win 12-5 on their senior night.

"Our shots just weren't going in," Lakeside middie Patrick Tynan said. "We were making their goalie look good. We were shooting the ball at his stick."

The Panthers were up 4-3 late in the first half. The Wolfpack, in their second season of lacrosse, entered the game last in their region with four wins.

Coach Jeff Becker's team capitalized on its numbers advantage when Lakeside was in the penalty. The Wolfpack's first two goals came with the Panthers a man down, and two Panthers were in the penalty box when Greenbrier scored its final goal of the half.

But the Panthers worked some breathing room before halftime.

Senior Jerry Dickson scored with 23 seconds left in the second quarter. Tynan won the ensuing faceoff and fired a quick pass to attacker Phillip O'Gorman, whose goal made it 6-3.

"Greenbrier played a (heck) of a game," Lakeside coach Ron Ritter said. "The first half, they shocked us."

The game remained physical into the second half. Battles for groundballs turned into shoving away from the ball, forcing the head referee to stop play and call for an impromptu meeting at midfield.

"He let everybody know he wasn't taking any crap," Becker said.

Tempers improved, and the Panthers closed out the win to move to 11-3. Ritter's team, in its third season, missed out on one of the top two region spots needed to make the playoffs.

The Panthers were coming off losses to Atlanta powers St. Pius and Decatur, the top two teams in their region.

But the win against the Wolfpack left Lakeside encouraged. The team closed out its season Friday at Starr's Mill.

"We've improved a lot," Tynan said. "Hopefully, we can make the playoffs next year."