MATTAPOISETT — Will Levrault wasn’t leaving anything for chance.
The Apponequet junior scored all four of his goals in the first half to give the Lakers a commanding halftime lead en route to a 10-4 victory over Old Rochester at David S. Hagen Memorial Field Friday.
“That’s what we try to do every game,” Levrault said. “When we come out early, we can usually try to run away with it. It’s so much easier to play when we’re up early so we’re always trying to come out hot.”
Getting off to fast starts has been key to Apponequet’s eight-game win streak.
"In those two games, we came out slow,” Levrault said of Apponequet losing its first two games of the season to Bridgewater-Raynham and Dartmouth. “We’ve been trying to bring more energy in the beginning.”
Apponequet head coach Jeremy Nodelman added, “It’s always important especially against these guys because they've come back on us a number of times the last few years. We always know it’s going to be a grind.”
It was Apponequet’s first sweep of Old Rochester in recent memory.
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“That was huge for us,” Nodelman said. “We’ve talked about it the last few years that we’ve always split with these guys and this is the first opportunity we’ve had to take two from there and the second one on their home is big. We knew it was going to be a tough game and we knew we had to play smart, but that was an incentive for us since we haven’t done it before.”
Kevin O’Connor got things going for Apponequet all game by winning 14 of 15 faceoffs.
“It really starts with our faceoff guy, Kevin, controlling faceoffs and getting possession,” Nodelman said. “When he’s winning faceoffs, it really makes the difference.”
With Apponequet up 2-1 after the first quarter, Levrault scored three of his team’s next four goals to put the Lakers out front 6-2 with 2:56 left in the first half. Levrault also had an assist in the game.
“He is a true point guard,” Nodelman said. “He sees the field. He’s done a great job of going right and left this year. He’s a lefty, but he’s going right too. He sees the field. He sees open guys. He sees space and he can make fantastic shots from anywhere on the field.”
While Levrault is a standout on the basketball team as Apponequet's starting point guard, he’s played lacrosse the longest.
“I’ve been playing my whole life,” said Levrault, who started with the Riverhawks. “I love lacrosse. I love being outside and I love these guys. We just feed off each other so well.”
With Friday’s win, the Lakers moved a step closer to their first goal of the season.
“Defend the wall,” Levrault said. “We won the SCC championship last year so we’re looking to repeat that and hopefully make a deep playoff run.”
HOW IT HAPPENED
Apponequet led by as much as seven in the third quarter. Old Rochester cut it to 9-4 in the second half, but Apponequet goalie Hunter Owen was there to make one big save after another. He finished with nine.
“It’s a young team,” said Old Rochester head coach Michael Forns. “Last year we were very seasoned with a high IQ and this year it’s different. We’re still trying to figure out who we are. I think this one was eye-opening.”
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WHAT IT MEANS
The Lakers, who improved to 8-2 overall and 7-0 in the South Coast Conference, will host Fairhaven on Wednesday. The Bulldogs (6-5, 5-2 SCC) host Seekonk on Wednesday.
COACHES CORNER
“It’s a trifecta. I’m blessed right now with having those three guys (Will Levrault, Jake Cusson and Kenny Wisniewski). The other guys are feeding off of them and developing their games.” — Nodelman
TEAM STATS
For Apponequet, Jake Cusson had three goals and two assists while Kenny Wisniewski and Colin McKay had one goal and three assists apiece. Nathan Navega added a goal. For Old Rochester, Brendan Foster, Andrew Nee and Caleb Bousquet each had a goal.
This article originally appeared on Standard-Times: 'Huge for us': Apponequet beats Old Rochester for second time this season
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