SWAMPSCOTT — On Monday afternoon, Swampscott (8-9) hosted Salem in a Northeastern Conference lacrosse game. It was the Big Blue who defended their home field, beating the Witches 16-1.
The Big Blue offense was on full display, with eight goalscorers and 11 assisted goals.
The chemistry showed within the first 30 seconds, as Jason Codispoti found a cutting Carson Palmer, who fired it past the Salem goalie to open the scoring.
After the game, Big Blue coach Geoff Beckett said he was “happy” with the ball movement against Salem’s defense.
“We knew we were going to see a zone, so we knew we had to find the soft parts of the zone and attack certain spots,” Beckett said. “The guys did a good job responding to that and dodging with their heads up and making the extra pass.”
Codispoti, who finished with a game-high four assists, showed his playmaking skills by committing the defense before finding Liam Keaney, who scored the Big Blue’s fourth goal within five minutes.
“Our main thing is to not beat ourselves with turnovers or forced passes,” Beckett said. “I feel we made the right play often today.”
The Big Blue went into halftime with a 10-1 lead.
Although Beckett was happy with the goals the team scored, Beckett said he was “upset” with the goal Swampscott conceded.
“I’m a little upset about that one goal,” Beckett. “That was a great shot from Salem though.”
Postgame, Beckett was full of praise for the Witches and their development over the season.
“Hats off to Salem. They’re literally getting better every week,” Beckett said. “They’re moving the ball better and playing better defense. They keep competing, and that’s what it’s all about.”
With only one game left, Beckett described what made his group of guys special throughout the season.
“The last couple of years this team has really gelled together,” Beckett said. “It’s been a good group. They’re all friends, they work hard together. We have fun and work hard at practice. There’s no quit in them, which is what I love.”
The Big Blue’s next game is on Tuesday, when they host Triton at 5 p.m.
“Hopefully we can beat Triton and finish the year at 9-9,” Beckett said.
Goalscorers (Swampscott)
Liam Keaney (4)
Drew McCathern (3)
Jason Rothwell (3)
Ronan Locke (2)
Codispoti (1)
Palmer (1)
Liam Herlihy (1)
Thomas Mello (1)
