Clippers advance to semifinals
No. 1 Cumberland thrashes Narragansett at Tucker Field
CUMBERLAND – There were no byes this year in the Division II boys lacrosse playoffs, but the way Cumberland's first-round matchup shook out, there might as well have been. The Clippers drew eight-seeded Narragansett, and dispatched the Mariners in easy fashion, winning – and advancing – 15-2.
Jack Hayes led the charge for the Clippers by scoring six times and dishing out an assist. Seven different Clippers scored goals, and nine of the 15 goals were assisted.
“Pretty much,” just took care of business, said Cumberland head coach Scott Carpenter. “We talked all week long about coming out and doing exactly that, taking care of business. This is a team that gave us fits earlier in the season, they were beating us five, six minutes into the third quarter. We were down two, three goals. We focused on coming out fast, setting the tone early and I'm really proud of my guys for following through.”
The first meeting of the two sides came on April 25, and the Clippers won 17-9 after struggling through the first half. There were never any signs of struggle on Thursday. The Clippers scored on their first possession and never looked back.
Derek Carpenter opened the scoring up in the third minute of a patient offensive set. Due to a timekeeping error, the Clippers scored again before another second had ticked off. In total in the first quarter, the Clippers had eight goals.
Jack Andrews scored all three of his hat trick goals in the first quarter. The Clippers added on four more in the second quarter, enacting the mercy rule running clock before halftime could roll around.
Coach Carpenter highlighted his team's patience with the ball as key to the dominant playoff win.
“We've been trying to focus on being a little more patient with the ball,” he said. “Definitely did a good job of that tonight. Getting into our offensive sets, moving the ball around. Not just going for the first opportunity, going for the right opportunity.”
While the team's offensive efforts as a whole were impressive, it was the play of Hayes that continually dazzled the crowd. Hayes scored at least once in every quarter of play, and outmuscled the Mariner defenders at every turn.
“Athletically they're far superior,” said Narragansett head coach Mark Chafee. “Physically they're just superior to any of the teams [in Division II].
They would get in front of the cage, and [when all is said and done] they're still standing.”
Even when the Mariners managed to knock the Clippers off their mark, they still found a way to score. A pair of Narragansett defenders sent Hayes to the ground in front of the net in the second quarter, but the junior scored a highlight reel goal as he was falling.
The win keeps the Clippers season moving right along. Defending state champion Prout awaits in the next round. For Coach Carpenter, who right after defeating Narragansett had yet to see the results of Prout's first round game against Coventry, it was more about how Cumberland plays than who they play.
“Whoever we have, we have,” he said. “We've had the mentality all year long that's it one game at a time. Next opponent, and we prepare for that opponent and do whatever we can to prepare for them. Both those teams are very well coached.”
The Clippers lost to the Crusaders in last year's D-II title game, and got a smidge of revenge in the last regular season game of this season. The 14-12 win at Prout on May 19 allowed them to lock up the overall one seed. The two teams will go to battle with a lot on the line yet again, this time at Cumberland, date and time still to be announced.