Woodstock
“Thirty seconds can change a game,” the Wasps assistant coach said to the seated players, many of them with their chins nearly touching their chests. “You will remember this one for the rest of your lives. I guarantee you that.”
And not for happy reasons. Woodstock, seventh-seeded in the Vermont Division I playoffs, blew a pair of three-goal leads and was upset, 9-7, by 10th-seeded BFA-St. Albans in a first-round contest. Never since the Wasps first qualified for the state postseason in 1993 have they failed to reach at least the division quarterfinals.
The visiting Bobwhites scored the fourth quarter’s only three goals, while the hosts were awarded each of the second half’s four penalties.
The goal that tied the contest at 7-7 a minute into the final stanza came with Woodstock standout Daniel Robinson on the sidelines for slashing. The junior midfielder said the call was deserved and that he lost emotional control during a scrap for the ball.
“It was a selfish play on my part,” said Robinson, who scored two goals and had an assist. “With the type of run-and-gun player I am, sometimes things get to me.”
Said coach Brandon Little: “Dan’s grown a ton, and those mistakes happened a lot less often this season. Next year, I think he’ll be more dialed in, keep his emotions under control and be a great leader.”
Woodstock (8-8) scored the game’s first three goals during the initial 10 minutes and was up, 4-2, with two minutes remaining before halftime. However, the Bobwhites (7-8) scored twice before intermission and gave up a goal seconds before the horn, resulting in a 5-4 Wasps lead at the break.
Woodstock scored twice in a nine-second span roughly a minute into the second half and led, 7-4. BFA produced the next five tallies, however, and overcame a 7-6 deficit after three quarters. The Bobwhites bounced to their bus with celebratory cheers while the home team sat on a grassy bank and under a stand of trees, the players’ faces registering mostly shock.
“The mental lapses are something that’s happened to us all season,” Little said. “Our (physical) game was good but I don’t think mentally we were 100 percent. We made a huge defensive stand and held them for like four minutes and we wanted to go on offense and burn some time off the clock.
“We made two passes in the other end and the ball went out of bounds and came back down the other direction.”
BFA’s go-ahead goal followed another long possession and a scramble atop the crease that kicked up a large dust cloud in which the ball somehow eluded goaltender Coleman McKaig. Despite the close score in the second half, the Bobwhites were willing to play keep-away for lengthy stretches. Little said the tactic surprised him but that his team could have blown it apart had it shown more quick-strike capability.
“If we had picked up a couple of ground balls in the midfield and finished a fast break, we were right there,” he said. “But their goalie made saves and we didn’t convert the easy ones that we have before this season.”
The visitors iced the contest with a 1-on-1 roll dodge to the cage with two minutes to play. By that time, the Wasps defense was spent and a cross-checking call on Andrew Buchan-Groff with 40 seconds remaining was just salt in the hosts’ collective wound.
“It was frustrating for sure, because they got in our heads,” Robinson said. “We lost heart for some reason and we weren’t playing together the way we should have. I can’t really explain it.”
Woodstock graduates seven seniors but only one starting attackman and no one from its top two midfield units. Four freshmen and four sophomores saw a good deal of playing time this season. A new goaltender and faceoff man must be found and that process will start during the next two weeks, when the Wasps will continue to practice through the date of the division title game.
The first such workout? Today.
“We’ll have everyone sleep it off and then break it down and figure out where we made our mistakes this season and how we can be better,” said Little, adding that he may have junior varsity, alumni and even some junior-high players come to the optional workouts.
“Lacrosse season is short and the kids don’t always touch the ball during the offseason. Every other team in Vermont that’s going to play the next two weeks is two weeks ahead. We’re here, so we might as well keep getting better.”
Woodstock received three goals and an assist from Jack Arthur. Patrick Potter and Patrick Bald also scored for the Wasps and Jackson Wood had an assist.
Notes: BFA wore shooting shirts under their jerseys with the words “Dirty Birds” on the back hem. … The Bobwhites, who snapped a three-game losing streak, play a quarterfinal game at No. 2 South Burlington on Friday. The Rebels won the teams’ regular season matchup, 10-1, earlier this month and their 2015 quarterfinal meeting, 16-1. … Woodstock lost three of its final five games after starting 0-3. … The Wasps are 32-20 in postseason play overall and 3-5 the past three seasons. … Dictionary.com defines a Bobwhite as “any of several American quail … having mottled, reddish-brown, black and white plumage.” However, the school’s Wikipedia.com page says that its boys sports teams are nicknamed for a past athletic director named … Bob White.