PEABODY — Peabody’s boys lacrosse team kicked off spring vacation week with a 10-4 loss at home against Northeastern Conference foe Gloucester Monday morning.
Kellen Quadros and Matt Voz led the Tanners’ offense with two goals apiece. For the Fishermen, Milo Aberle notched a hat trick, while Jackson Harnish added two more.
The game was up for grabs with the Fishermen clinging to a 6-4 lead with less than nine minutes to go, but Gloucester exploded for three goals in a little more than a minute to put the game out of reach.
“Lacrosse is a game of runs. It was tight early in the game and then, they kind of got the momentum. That’s how it goes sometimes,” said Peabody coach Jason Marshall. “As always, it’s about working on our passing and catching to avoid those turnovers. Today, we just made some mistakes that are a little bit uncharacteristic for us. The guys know what to do and we have to get back to that.”
After a scoreless first quarter, Sam Sanfilippo staked Gloucester to a 1-0 lead with a man-up goal at the 8:34 mark of the second. Eighteen seconds later, Aberle doubled the lead to 2-0.
With 6:44 remaining in the half, Quadros buried a feed from Mario Ippolito to cut Peabody’s deficit to 2-1. Harnish answered back with a goal about four minutes later to send the teams into halftime with Gloucester on top 3-1.
Peabody started strong in the second half with a pair of goals from Vax in the first three minutes to knot the score 3-3. Gloucester responded with goals from Harnish and Finn Costa late in the quarter to take a 5-3 lead. Peabody answered right back seconds later when Logan Bryte threaded the ball to Quadros, all alone on the left side, who drilled it home with 26 seconds left in the quarter.
Unfortunately, that was as close as the Tanners (1-6) came in this one.
Marshall highlighted the play of Bryte, Stylz Bonaventure, Vaz, and Quadros.
“Logan is kind of a go-to guy for us, who we rely on a lot,” Marshall said. “For a freshman, he does a little bit of everything. He takes face-offs most of the time and is one of our top offensive middies. He does whatever we need of him.
“Stylz played great. He was able to get upfield fast, especially once he gets to the ground ball and he played aggressively today. Matt really carries us through some moments when maybe the offense isn’t moving. He takes the ball on his stick and pushes up the tempo himself. Kellen also played really well. He did a good job getting open.”
Gloucester coach Jeff Kennedy highlighted the play of Aberle, Sanfilippo, and Joe Gucciardi.
“Milo’s been playing well. This is his first year starting and today was his second straight hat trick,” Kennedy said. “Sam really does a good job moving the ball and is always good for a couple of assists. He sets the pace of play for the offensive guys.
“Joe is a senior captain and is starting to get a little more vocal, and the other defensemen are starting to learn off that and get some experience.”
Peabody’s next game is Wednesday at home against Beverly (10 a.m.).
“I don’t know much about them, but they’re always a good team,” Marshall said. “They have a good youth system and their program is always full of kids who have been playing lacrosse for a long time. They’re always a deep team with experienced players. It should be a good game.”
Gloucester’s next game is Friday in Salem (4 p.m.).
“We beat them earlier in the year. They’re a well-coached team and their goalie is one of the better keepers in the conference,” Kennedy said. “We just have to show up. We can’t be sleeping on anybody.”
