Herndon goalkeeper Ryan Mach, right, finished with 17 saves against Chantilly on March 23. Photo by Craig Sterbutzel.
Sometimes, lessons are learned the hard way.
Herndon boys’ lacrosse coach Dave Baggetta wants his players to approach the game with effort and intelligence. On Monday, the Hornets saw what can happen when they’re not on top of their game.
Perennial power Chantilly walloped the Hornets 10-1 at Herndon High School. The Chargers led 4-0 at halftime before coming out strong in the third quarter, adding four goals to their advantage.
Chantilly led 10-0 in the fourth quarter before senior attackman Ryan McLaughlin scored Herndon’s lone goal with 2:28 remaining.
Chantilly has played in the state championship game in five of the last seven years, winning titles in 2008 and 2013. On Monday, the Chargers improved to 2-0 and dominated during what equated to a tune-up for Thursday’s matchup with defending state champion Robinson.
What did the Hornets take from Monday's game?
“I think you’re always learning, especially when you have a team that’s got a number of sophomores that are contributing, mixed in with seniors and juniors,” Baggetta said. “... What I really would hope though, No. 1, is that our kids look at how hard they need to play the game. I also think what they do is they take this into practice and they realize that they have to be at full speed, because passing and catching always has to be at full speed. When you play a team like this, they’re going to prove it to you because they’re going for 48 minutes.”
Baggetta, in his fifth season as Herndon head coach, said he talks to the Hornets about “competing.”
“When I use the word ‘compete,’ it encompasses a lot of different things,” he said. “I want to see them compete in terms of effort, but I also want to see them compete in terms of being smart with how they do things.”
Herndon goalkeeper Ryan Mach, facing heavy fire, finished with 17 saves. The junior received praise from his head coach.
“He played an outstanding game,” Baggetta said. “... I think he helps keep the guys motivated because they see how hard he’s working in the cage. Frankly, he’s down there playing extremely hard, giving us an opportunity to at least get the ball back. ... The way that Ryan plays, he’s giving you an opportunity to hang around. Now we’ve got to do a better job of collectively helping him out as a team.”
McLaughlin is Herndon’s top offensive threat and will play at High Point University.
The loss dropped Herndon’s record to 2-2. The Hornets opened the season with a 13-9 loss to West Springfield on March 16, before beating Annandale 15-6 on March 18 and West Potomac 11-7 on March 19.
The Hornets will travel to face Westfield at 7:15 p.m. on Thursday, March 26.