The Connection

Mount Vernon — Mount Vernon senior Shoshone Smith nearly tied a school record on March 14 when the midfielder scored seven goals in the Majors’ season opener against T.C. Williams. But while Smith thrived, his performance didn’t lead to victory. No other Majors scored during the contest and Mount Vernon lost, 10-7.

Two days later, the Mount Vernon boys’ lacrosse team opened National District competition against defending champion Yorktown. Smith managed just one goal against the Patriots, but this time, his teammates helped carry the load.

Six different Majors scored a goal as Mount Vernon jumped out to a 4-0 lead and held on for a 6-3 win on March 16 at MVHS. Smith scored the game’s first goal nearly five minutes into the contest and the Majors added three more before the end of the opening quarter.

By game’s end Jaelen Gadson, Brian Roling, Devon Frank, Dusty Floyd and Eric Myhre had also scored.

“Right now, it really says a lot [about our depth] because last game I was the only one that scored,” Smith said. “I’m a lot happier that a lot more guys got a touch and they got some shots on cage and we got the win.”

“Right now, it really says a lot because last game I was the only one that scored. I’m a lot happier that a lot more guys got a touch, and they got some shots on cage and we got the win.”

— Mount Vernon senior Shoshone Smith

The school record for goals in a game is eight, set in 2010 by Brendan Doyle, according to head coach Dale Nalls.

Defensively, Mount Vernon held Yorktown scoreless for the first 16 minutes of the game and did not allow a second goal until more than 28 minutes had passed. Nalls said senior defenders Gadson and Zak Balde played well, but the coach had particular praise for goalkeeper Connor Woods, a senior transfer from West Potomac.

“Defensively, Connor Woods in goal was real strong for us,” Nalls said. “He stayed big in the cage. He deterred their shooters because they had a lot of one-on-one looks with him. He may not have made contact with every ball, but he made saves by deterring them from shooting where they wanted to by getting his stick up and getting in the way.”

Woods said the key to his success is blocking out distractions.

“My big problem is if I think too much, I’ll miss it,” Woods said. “So right when I see the man about to shoot, I’ll just blank out everything in my mind and just concentrate on doing naturally what comes and hopefully I’ll make the save.”

The Majors will host the two-day Mount Vernon Invitational on March 23-24. Mount Vernon’s next district game is April 17 at Edison.

“We played great as a team,” Woods said of the Majors’ effort against Yorktown. “It was a real good thing for us to get the win coming off a loss from TC. It was great to get us back on track, get our minds in the right spot and I’m just glad we could pull it off.”