Bruin Boys Bouncing Back After Streak Snapped

Going undefeated again was never the goal for the Broadneck boys lacrosse team. After their win streak ended at 26 in April, the Bruins turned the page and honed their sights back in on attempting to repeat as 4A state champions.

Broadneck bounced back reasonably well from the April 12 setback, an 11-4 loss to Severna Park, by winning all three ensuing county games. They beat Southern 17-6, Crofton 10-4, and Arundel 14-4, as they head into the county playoffs with a 9-3 record.

“They’ve responded well. The senior class banded together, looked inside themselves, and they see a different opportunity compared to last year,” said Broadneck coach Jeff McGuire. “As coaches, we may never get another team like that again. That year happened, (now) it is what it is, we’re done talking about it and we’re moving past it. This senior class knows they have the opportunity to right some wrongs and that will hopefully make lifting a trophy that much sweeter. That’s kind of their plan, and they’ve taken action to pay more attention to detail and demand more of others.”

Over the last month, the Bruins have gotten offense from a variety of players, including hat tricks from Tyler Hicks (twice), Brayden Schmidt and Liam Komlosy (twice). Graham Hartman dominated the faceoffs, winning 82% of his draws across seven games, while Matt Tettemer saved 42 shots across six games played. Braden McCassie netted a double-overtime winner against Mount Hebron on April 8.

The only thing that has halted Broadneck’s momentum is a pair of out-of-state opponents: the Bruins lost to Yorktown (Virginia) 11-7 on April 20, and then to Cape Henlopen (Delaware) 7-3 on April 27.

What seems to be an up-and-down April is really a matter of fine margins. Broadneck is dominating faceoffs and getting sufficient scoring opportunities, but attack selection and a deviation from what makes Broadneck difficult to beat is the work in progress.

Bridging that gap through the county tournament is what McGuire hopes will get the team untracked and headed back toward another potential state championship run.

“We showed up and expected to be Broadneck lacrosse instead of going out and earning it. They’ve realized they need to put in a little different work ethic and demand more of others, and bond together,” McGuire said. “They’ve realized what they’re capable of within themselves, and they’re good players and can make a run. It’s just a matter of how they put it together. There’s a little bit of give and take, and we’re going all-in with the seniors and really game-planning each game as much as possible to give them all that we have as coaches to make sure this group is up to speed when it comes time to hopefully win some hardware.”