East Greenwich boys lacrosse stuns Westerly in two overtimes

WESTERLY — Micah Dawson shut down Sal Augeri Field.

Dawson provided needed confidence and celebration in double overtime for East Greenwich boys lacrosse. His winner in the second extra frame at Westerly had the Bulldogs turning off the scoreboard before his celebration even finished.

The damage, though, was done. Dawson lifted the Avengers, 9-8, some unknown minutes into the overtime. It finished off East Greenwich’s rally which saw Cooper Lake score twice with a minute left in regulation to draw the Avengers even.

A scoreless four-minute first overtime just delayed Dawson’s celebration that carried him from inside the Bulldogs defensive zone to East Greenwich’s bench and onto the playoffs. Monday night's triumph supplies further intrigue to the Division II tournament as a Bulldog win on May 18 would’ve locked up the top seed for Westerly.

The Avengers (13-2) now trail by just .07 in the RPI standings with each team having one game left in the regular season.

“It’s great to just get back at Westerly after we lost to them,” Dawson said. “This was my first game back from a concussion that happened against Westerly too.

“We just came out firing after our loss last time. We just had that grit to win here.”

EG entered with just one loss against league opponents as Westerly (13-3) traveled north and grabbed a 12-9 victory earlier this spring. The Bulldogs ended the Avengers’ bid for a perfect season with their relentless pressure and physicality in that May 4 meeting. And it looked like Westerly was going to run the same script after it rallied from a 4-0 deficit to start the match.

But the Avengers showed something maybe more important than the win itself – a toughness that plays against the Bulldogs. When EG matches its lacrosse skill with the fight needed to win a title, it can raise the trophy that the program seeks after losing in the championship last season.

“It’s just a lot of adrenaline,” Lake said. “Came into the game with a little bit of a groin strain … I was trying to minimize movement, staying on the crease and getting my pole out of the way for my teammates. Towards the end of the game, I had to step up, and I was lucky to get that last shot.”

Lake’s second score landed on a step down from well outside the offensive zone as the last-second fire tied the match with four seconds left. His first score came after a Westerly turnover in the defensive zone a minute earlier. The Avengers won the following draw, and came up empty, but there was enough time for Lake to regain control, look at the clock, and shoot from on the left side.

“It’s fantastic,” Lake said. “We’re in the same spot as last year but we just have to finish unlike last year.”

He was rushed in celebration by Brady Parks who also scored in EG’s opening sequence that netted the early advantage. Austen Dufresne also poured in a pair to open the sequence as East Greenwich led 4-1 after the first frame.

“They’re just gritty,” Parks said of Lake and Dawson. “We’re down two, but we were never out of it. Just had to get the ball and move it and we’re good.”

Westerly took its first lead of the match, a 7-6 advantage, with 7:56 left in regulation and had a two-goal lead with 3:18 remaining.

“So much more confidence,” Parks said. “It feels so much better getting one under the belt. I think we can beat anyone, so I feel very confident going into the finals.”

EAST GREENWICH (9): Austen Dufresne 2, Brady Parks 2, Cooper Lake 2, Micah Dawson 2, Parker Leary 1.

WESTERLY (8): Ian Morissette 2, Evan Morissette 2, Brayden Antoch 1, Logan Unkuri 1, Caleb Williams 1, Logan Startz 1.

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Final score from East Greenwich boys lacrosse against Westerly