Ridgewood Boys Lacrosse: Maroons Stumble Against Summit, Lose 6-1

RIDGEWOOD, NJ — With the state championships rapidly approaching its conclusion, the Ridgewood boys lacrosse team squared off against the Summit Hilltoppers, to end the regular season at the summit of high school lacrosse.

However, it was not to be. The Maroons posted their lowest scoring output of the season by far – managing only one goal, which came in the first quarter, as they were smothered and stifled by the iron-clad Summit defense. The Hilltoppers forced Ridgewood into multiple turnovers, rarely conceding a good shot throughout the game.

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Despite that, the Maroons gave as good as they got in the early going, as the game was a relatively low-scoring defensive struggle early on. The two teams exchanged goals in the first quarter, with Jack Schultz finding the back of the net for Ridgewood and Summit responding in kind.

Summit managed two more goals in the second quarter, meaning Ridgewood headed into halftime trailing 3-1. Ridgewood seemed to dominate time of possession in the second half, but could not do a thing to penetrate the unyielding Summit defense. In the closing minutes of the third quarter, the Hilltoppers forced a Maroons turnover, went coast-to-coast and scored. On another possession, Summit once again pried the ball away from a Ridgewood attacker and cashed in on the offensive end yet another goal.

The Maroons trailed 5-1 heading into the game's final quarter. Ordinarily, it would be a trivial deficit to overcome, but with the Ridgewood offense sputtering, each goal felt insurmountable. Summit tacked on one additional goal for good measure before the final buzzer sounded, ending what was an offensive performance to forget for the Maroons. Despite allowing only six goals, Ridgewood still lost by a considerable five-goal margin.

Ridgewood Head Coach Mike Pounds was understandably unhappy with his team's performance. "We allowed a lot of turnovers," he said. "And then what happened? We allowed two goals off turnovers. We have got to learn to play smarter."

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The Maroons will have one more regular season game (against Chatham) to do it before the Championship playoff tournament begins in earnest. They are currently projected to be the first seed of the North, Group 4 bracket over teams like Montclair, Bridgewater-Raritan and Westfield.

Read more Sports news from around Ridgewood here:

• Ridgewood Flag Football: Maroons Cruise to Victories in Opening Round of Playoffs
• Ridgewood Girls Lacrosse: Riese Doherty's Buzzer Beater Lets Maroons Avenge Their Loss to IHA
• Ridgewood Boys Lacrosse: Maroons Bounce Back, Shred Hunterdon Central 17-3

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