By Kylan Watson SYRACUSE, N.Y. (NCC News) — The Lafayette Lancers Varsity Boys Lacrosse team won their first title in 14 years last weekend.
It took three unanswered goals and an overtime for the Lancers to beat the Briarcliff Bears 9-8.
The player who hit the game-winning goal for the Lancers was senior midfielder Reid Jackowski.
Jackowski had 52 goals and 30 assists this season, and none were bigger than that goal.
“It felt incredible you know. It was a crazy experience to be running around throwing your pads off and your teammates running at you,” said Jackowski, “But, none of it would have happened if our face-off guy wasn’t able to get the ball and our team moved the ball, to help me get that open shot.”
Jackowski’s shot capped off an incredible Cinderella run by the Lancers. They came into the postseason with an 8-6 record and many experts did not have them going far in the tournament.
Jackowski and the other team captains called a meeting to help his teammates get ready for the playoffs. The meeting was called because some of the players were not putting in a lot of effort during practice.
“We got the team together after the last loss to Skaneateles,” said Chris O’Hara, head coach of the Lafayette Varsity Boys Lacrosse team. “We talked about refocusing and recommitting to the team, and the guys brought in to that for the last half of the season.”
O’Hara thinks one of the reasons the lancers got off to a slow start is because they had to get students from Onondaga Central Schools acclimated to their team culture.
“It took some time for the kids from OCS to get comfortable with the team,” O’Hara said.
Despite all of that, the Lancers were able to capture another state title, and they look to be hungry for more titles.
Reid Jackowski; “It felt incredible you know. It was a crazy experience to be running around throwing your pads off and your teammates running at you.”
Kylan Watson;Reid Jackowski is a senior Midfielder for the Lafeyette Boys Lacrosse team.
His biggest goal of the season helped the Lancers,
win their first title in fourteen years.
Kylan; Jackowski is a team captain for the team.
Before the playoffs started he and the other team captains held a meeting.
Those meetings helped the team come together.
Reid Jackowski;” We held a team meeting. We had several of them before Sectionals, we had a couple of them. Guys really just brought in , and then after we won our first game against Tully, and then we knocked off Skaneatles our practices were a lot different. We weren’t walking around and everyone. And everyone was practicing as hard as they could and the team really just took off.””
Kylan; Jackowski has had a big impact on this team.
He scored 52 goals and had 30 assists this year.
His coach asked him to make a big change…
Kylan Watson;
“Reid Jackowski was asked to make a position change. His junior year he played on the defensive side of the ball. And this year he had to make the switch to a Midfielder. His coach said that is just the type of player and the type of leader. Reid Jackowski is.”
Chris O’Hara; “He’s a lead by example, type of Captain. We really didn’t have anyone on the team that was a vocal type of captain.”
Kylan;
O’Hara said, asking Jackowski to change positions and him being so willing to do it.
Really helped in bringing the team together.
Chris O’Hara;”And when you’re a younger guy. Looking at a senior who has an established position, and you see that he is willing to do whatever the team needs him to do, to make the team better. That’s just a huge example for the guys coming up.”)
Kylan; Jackowski will continue to play college lacrosse at Robert Weseleyan College in Rochester, New York.
