St. Anne’s-Belfield may have had trouble in the third quarter last year, but this year — and in particular against Woodberry Forest Saturday — the Saints have gotten stronger coming out of the locker room.
“Third quarters have been big for us — it’s really something we talked a lot about in the offseason because we struggled with last year,” said STAB coach Bo Perriello. “So whethere its been a big defensive stand or we’ve been able to make some real strides scoring goals, its been real good to us.”
Senior goalie Austin Geisler and the Saints’ defense locked down the Tigers in the third, helping built a six-goal lead going into the final quarter as STAB picked up a 13-5 win over Woodberry.
Geisler finished with 11 saves while the defense led by Charles Schreck and Ian Jumper helped create turnover after turnover.
“I think our defense played great — since those first two losses I think we’ve really come together,” Geisler said. “Once we got that team concept down of just helping each other out, it changed.”
Schreck actually got in on the offensive action with a solid pass to Andrew Crockett on a run deep into Woodberry’s defensive zone.
St. Anne’s offense made that task easier by jumping out a 5-1 lead and scoring consistently over the course of the game. STAB moved the ball well, finding open scorers right in front of the net on several occasions. On one particularly slick sequence, Matt Morris found Tim Werner on the doorstep for a quick stick goal to give STAB an 8-3 lead during the third.
It didn’t hurt the Saints’ efforts that Woodberry clanged several shots off the pipe in the first half, allowing the Saints to build that early 5-1 advantage. The Tigers plugged away though, answering back with a solid defensive effort in the second quarter. Woodberry goalie Burgess Robinson was nearly perfect during that frame, keeping the Tigers alive as the offense continued to struggle with finishing. Most of the goals Robinson — who finished with 15 saves — surrendered were at point-blank range, a product of STAB’s efficient, precise offensive movement.
“Goalies are only as good as the guys in front of them—a little breakdown five or eight yards away from the crease against a team like this who can shoot the lights out—it was like ‘boom, boom,” said Woodberry coach Brian Hemming. “They do a good job of looking two passes away on the back and skipping it.”
The Tigers, on the other hand, had to be opportunistic, scoring on a fluky rebound that went straight up in the air and slipped past Geisler and an errant pass that left Hatcher Williams with an open net and an easy goal.
Owen Van Arsdale led the Saints in scoring with two goals and four assists, while Andrew Crockett finished with a hat trick and a pair of assists. Morris, Connor McCollough and Tim Werner finished with two goals each with Morris and Werner registering assists. Hobey Jiranek also had a goal.
Mark Monroe and Williams scored two goals each for the Tigers while Carson Milikin added the fifth tally. Williams also had an assist. The Saints locked down attackman Griffin Burke, Woodberry’s leading scorer.
Woodberry’s schedule doesn’t get much easier as they face a Western Albemarle team that’s building steam Tuesday night while St. Anne’s-Belfield locks up with crosstown rival Covenant Wednesday.
