RED DEVILS LOSE IN BARNBURNER

FALCONS OUTLAST RED DEVILS 12-11
EMMETT PRINTUP NETS 4 GOALS & 2 ASSISTS
BARRON & COLLINS-HARTWIG COMBINE FOR 9
LATE GOALS BY HENRY PROVE TO BE DIFFERENCE

(CLARENCE) If you were there, you'll remember this one! The Clarence Red Devils finally put the pieces together to play an entire 48 minutes. Unfortunately, it wasn't quite enough to win, as Clarence fell to division rival Niagara Wheatfield by the score of 12-11. Beyond the disappointing finish, the game proved to many that Clarence has arrived as a legitimate lacrosse program, capable of playing with some of the best teams in WNY. The back-and-forth affair had plenty of excitement as the game was not decided until the final buzzer. The Falcons were led by Emmett Printup (4g, 2a) and sophomore Kyle Henry (3g, 2a). Dan Barron (5g, 1a) and Jordan Collins-Hartwig (4g) did the bulk of the damage for the Red Devils. In all, 23 goals were scored in this affair. Strangely, it was both goaltenders that impressed throughout the contest, coming up with several great saves on some powerful and well-placed shots. Red Devil goaltender Ryan Duff registered 14 saves and his Wheatfield counterpart Joe Grady came up with 23!

Clarence created several scoring opportunities early in the first quarter. However, Grady kept the Devils off the scoreboard and it would be the Falcons who drew first blood. Emmett Printup, one of the top attackman in WNY would pop in his first goal of the day on a patented Wheatfield fastbreak. The Red Devil midfielders were caught watching and the Falcons took full advantage, moving the ball quickly upfield. Kyle Henry put a nice pass onto Printup's stick and the senior beat Duff to make it 1-0 NW.

It would take just about two minutes for Clarence to strike back. The Red Devils applied great pressure in front of the net. After several near misses and saves by Grady, attackman Tom Owen (1g) kicked the bouncing rebound past the goalie. However unorthodox the tally, it counted and Clarence knotted the game at 1 goal apiece.

The latter part of the first quarter was all Wheatfield as they continued to apply massive pressure on Duff. However, the Falcons would pull ahead as Pierce Abrams made it 2-1 on a beautiful dodge and shot across the top of the defense. Beating his man, Abrams let it fly from about 15 yards out beating the goalie to take the lead. Two minutes later, the Falcons would get a goal out of their long stick defender Nick Melligan. Melligan legged a clear across midfield and proceeded to rip an underhand bounce shot that fooled Duff. The Falcons led 3-1 after the first.

Clarence desperately needed to respond in the second quarter. It would be captain Dan Barron that would answer the call, scoring all three Clarence goals during the interval. Barron's first goal came after intercepting a cross field clearing pass. With no defense near, Barron beat Grady to close the gap to 3-2.

Wheatfield seemed to get into a groove for the next five minutes, controlling play throughout. Duff came up big, recording six saves in the second quarter. The Falcons would score eventually with about five and a half minutes left. The play was executed to perfection, and it didn't seem as if the Red Devil defense was badly beaten. Emmett Printup made a beautiful feed through the defense and hit a curling Tomas Lester in midair. Lester turned and ripped the shot home. I've never seen a 275+ lb player get up that high off the ground, but as God is my witness, it happened! Falcons built back their two goal lead.

Just over a minute later, senior attackman Elijah Printup showed his "stuff."I don't think Duff saw this one. It was a laser from about 20 yards deep. With so much on it, Duff failed to react in time and the Falcons looked as though they might open this one up. Wheaties 5-2.

In a period of time that seemed to turn the game around, the Red Devils fought back in the closing minutes of the first half. Barron took charge, scoring two goals in two minutes. The first goal came about as Barron, operating from the top, twisted and turned to get postion to unload a shot. The low missile roared past Grady and Clarence closed it to 5-3. Not finished quite yet, Dan would score again from a similar location in front from about 10 yards out. This important goal seemed to re-energize the Red Devils and the Falcons lead would be cut to 5-4 at the half.

The third quarter brought further fortune to Clarence. After a Falcon penalty, a charged up extra man unit was determined to make the visitors pay. Barron strung his fourth straight Clarence goal together on a beautiful 15 yard bounce shot from the top that cleanly beat Grady. The game was now knotted at 5.

Riding the wave of emotion, Clarence continued its onslaught. A key to many of the opportunities in the third quarter was the hard work in the midfield by Josh Rawdin and Ryan Connolly. Key faceoff possessions kept the ball away from the potent Falcon attack in turn creating several offensive opportunities for the Red Devils..

The stage was set for another Clarence veteran to take control. Jordan Collins-Hartwig fired up the Clarence fans on another EMO goal just 24 seconds after Barron tied the game. Seeing the weakness, Collins-Hartwig capitalized on a bounce shot of his own. The man up goal materialized as Jordan worked his way just outside the Falcon defense. Collins-Hartwig let it fly from about 15 yards out, beating the goaltender and giving the Red Devils their first lead of the evening. Score: 6-5 Clarence.

The one thing Niagara Wheatfield rarely shows is panic. With the offensive firepower they possess, they always seem to feel as if they can get back into it. Although a little frustrated, the Falcons went to work. Emmett Printup would do the honors as Clarence once again had the man advantage. However, a quick loss of possession saw the ball moving upfield into the hands of Printup who slashed to the front of the net and beat Duff to tie the game at 6.

This temporary lapse in focus for the Red Devils led to another goal 30 seconds later. Lester scored his second of the night on a pretty feed from Elijah Printup who dropped the ball over the defender and into Lester's stick. Tomas finished, and the Falcons reclaimed the lead 7-6.

Several minutes of up and down action ensued before Collins-Hartwig would lead the Devils back. With just under three minutes left in the third, Barron fed a cutting Collins-Hartwig. Jordan made his quick speed dodge and powered one into the back of the net to make it 7-7.

Then, with just over a minute remaining in the third, Collins-Hartwig would re-create the same scenario as minutes earlier. The goal was so similar in nature that my game notes just said, "see above." However, the excitement after the shot eclipsed any level of emotion that I had seen from this team all year. Jordan's "big" goal gave the Red Devils an 8-7 lead as the clock wound down on the third quarter.

It was anyone's game in the fourth quarter. However, the edge may have been the fact that Wheatfield has much more game experience in these type of situations. Neither team took control during the early part of the fourth. The play consisted of two teams battling for groundballs, trying not to make the big mistake. Transitions up and down the field. However, the last seven minutes of this contest would end in a flurry of offense that produced a total of eight goals.

With just under seven minutes to play, Wheatfield would tie the game off the stick of Kyle Henry. Henry would go on a tear during the end of the game, scoring three goals and picking up an assist. Credit the assist to Emmett Printup on his first and the Falcons tied it at 8.

Just a half minute later, the Falcons struck again, capitalizing on an extra man opportunity. Emmet Printup picked up his fourth and final goal on a nicely placed bounce shot across the goalie to the back side. NW took control 9-8.

Jordan Collins-Hartwig was on a mission to not allow this game to slip away. The Falcons had a difficult time controlling his speed throughout the contest. Jordan once again took full advantage, beating his man with a quick speed dodge and rifling the shot past Grady to tie it up at 9.

It took Wheatfield about 30 seconds to respond. Sophomore Dave Evert picked up his only goal of the game at a good time. The play was set up on a perfect skip pass through the defense by Henry. Evert finished it off and the Falcons took over the play for the next couple minutes.

The 10-9 Falcon lead quickly rose to 12-9 as Kyle Henry scored two quick goals. The first developed off a groundball win at midfield that quickly found its way to Henry just outside the crease. The quick stick goal made it 11-9. Thirty seconds later, it was Henry again. This time he would use his stick to pick up a hard rebounded shot right in front of Duff. Making it look easy, Henry delivered. Wheaties 12-9.

Throughout the contest, many things impressed me about play of the Red Devils. The "team effort" rivaled some of the best moments of last season's mid-year run. At certain points the team elevated its game to levels never seen before in the program's short history. The final minutes of this contest are what impressed me most. I think teams of the past may have bagged it. Two and a half minutes to play, down by three. We're done.

What I witnessed next was inspiring not only for the players involved, but showed a glimpse of how far we have come as a lacrosse program. Undeterred, the Red Devils continued to fight on. Dan Barron scored his fifth goal* of the night off a beautiful clearing pass by JD Skura. Barron let it rip and hope remained down only two goals. Falcons 12-10.

With another critical possession won, the Red Devils went to work on offense. This time attackman Dave Colicchia got into the act. Dodging from up top the defense and sending another bounce shot past Grady to close the gap to 12-11.

However, the Falcons refused to let this one slip away. After a significant faceoff win, midfielder Pierce Abrams did an outstanding job of keeping the ball away from the Clarence defenders. The Red Devils had one last chance to move the ball upfield with 6 seconds remaining. The ball sailed directly to the front of the crease area but Clarence was unable to get a shot off.

The Falcons handed the Red Devils their first loss in league play. Clarence's record stands at 2-1 in league and 3-2 overall. While the loss was disappointing, the game should be used as a springboard as the team gets into critical league play next week. First things first: the Iroquois Chiefs in a non-league contest on friday. For anyone who doesn't remember last season's game, click here. The Red Devil's record against the Chiefs is 0-7. Time to make it right. See you at the game.

* Congratulations go out to Dan Barron for registering his 100th career varsity goal at Clarence. He is the first player to ever achieve this distinction! Hopefully many more to come.