Hayfield Lacrosse Holds on for 9-7 Win

After executing a clean, crisp offense for much of the first half, Hayfield didn’t do much of anything after halftime. Fortunately for the Hawks, George Mason did just enough to hurt its own cause as much as help it, and Hayfield withstood the Mustangs rally for a 9-7 win.

After scoring five straight goals that started with Ben Tourkin’s near buzzer-beater at the end of the first half and keeping Hayfield off the board for the final 24 minutes, Mason committed three unnecessary roughness and unsportsmanlike conduct penalties in a two-minute span in the fourth quarter. That was enough to derail the comeback attempt, as the Mustangs were unable to score in the final five minutes and fell to 1-2 to start the season.

Five different players scored for Hayfield in a second quarter that saw the Hawks grab their largest lead of the game at 9-2 before Tourkin’s goal. Hayfield Coach Jack Kendall was pleased with his offense, particularly that seven of the Hawks’ nine goals were assisted, after failing to get anything going in a 16-0 season opening loss to West Springfield.

The second half, however, was a different story, as passes started to glance off sticks and the defensive pressure that had kept the ball away from Mason’s Will Powell started to ease up. Powell capitalized, scoring his third goal of the game on a laser from a sharp angle that proved to be the Mustangs’ last bit of offense.

Temperatures dropped near freezing, and snow flurries could be seen starting in the second quarter. Kendall attributed some of the second half mistakes to the weather, but mostly blamed impatience coming off a shutout.

“It has a lot to do with the cold,” said Kendall. “And I think we came out in the second half not with an urgency to finish the game, but with an urgency for everybody to pad their stats.”

Kendall also made a switch to backup goalie Kevin Kominars in the second half, a move that looked pretty smart when the junior came up with three big saves and nearly pitched a shutout in the third quarter until Powell scored with 1:06 remaining. Kominar’s biggest moment, however, came with 32 seconds remaining and the Mustangs making one final push. Powell took a pass right in front of the net, but Kominars came up with the stop as Powell shot while falling to his right.

The win moves the Hawks to 1-1 as they prepare for their district opener at Mount Vernon next Thursday. The Mustangs will make the 30-mile drive to Nokesville, Va. to take on Kettle Run on Tuesday.