The West Haven Youth Lacrosse League opened its spring season. The 3/4 Lightning picked up a big win over Hamden, 8-3. Charlie Gunning led the scoring, picking up four goals. Rocco Kelly added three goals of his own, and Colin Whelan picked up one as well. The team passed and moved the ball well, as shown by the number of players picking up assists for Gunning, Kelly, and Whelan’s goals. Among the assist getters were Jeremiah McGrath, Shea Outhavong, Shawn Gilbert, and Anthony Parise. Dante Antonucci and Andrew Hogan came up big defensively, picking off passes and beating Hamden to ground balls. Ben Trenchard and Ethan Dion man marked well, limiting Hamden’s shots on goal. Ethan McGrath made several saves in goal for the Westies in the win.
The K-2 Blue Devils played their first game against Milford, coming away with a close 6-4 win. Benjamin Trenchard, Jax Guarino and Brady Salkins scored their first career goals, with Anthony Parise and Shea Outhavong adding goals as well. Benjamin Peretz and Isaac Perez also worked hard in their opening match for the Westies.
In the second week, 3-5 Lightning and the K-2 Westies played a double-header against Wallingford Sunday. The Lightning opened the day with a 10-0 win. Ethan McGrath and Anthony Parise combined for the shut-out in goal. They were helped by Ethan Dion, Dante Antonucci, and Andrew Hogan, who all played a solid game defensively. Several West Haven players contributed offensively, led by Rocco Kelly, who scored the hat-trick and added an assist. Charlie Gunning and Jeremiah McGrath each had two goals and an assist. Colin Whelan, Cody Young, and Shea Outhavoung rounded out the scoring with a goal apiece. Shawn Gilbert added two assists in the win.
The K-2 Westies played the second game, and came away with a big win, 10-1. Ethan McGrath and Jax Guarino each picked up two goals. Guarino was assisted by Ben Trenchard on his second goal, and he returned the favor later in the game when he set-up Trenchard for a goal of his own. Brady Salkins scored a nice goal after he won the ball, cradled past a Wallingford defender and put the ball into the back of the net. Emmett Hemming battled hard for every ground ball. Graig Uzarski worked hard on defense in the win for the Westies.