BCIAA boys lacrosse: Wilson cruises to championship match win over Twin Valley

Wilson’s dominance in Berks County boys lacrosse continues.

The Bulldogs secured their 14th consecutive county championship with a 9-3 victory over Twin Valley on Tuesday night at Alvernia University in the second game of a girls/boys doubleheader.

Wilson has now defeated Twin Valley in three straight county championship games.

“They’re different every year because the journey is always different, and it’s a different group of kids working to get here,” Bulldogs coach Ryan Sheaffer said of what this title meant. “I certainly respect the heck out of Twin Valley and their program. They’re well coached and a really worthy opponent. It’s been great because we’ve really developed a little bit of a rivalry with those guys.

“So the guys take this really seriously. This is really important to us. We talk about it at the start of the year. It’s one of our very first goals. It starts with this one. We want to win some more, but it always starts with this one.”

The Bulldogs (16-3) avenged an 8-5 defeat to Twin Valley on April 7, with an emphatic performance Tuesday night.

Second-seeded Wilson was led by senior midfielder Luke Azzanesi, who recorded a first-half hat trick. Beckett Redner added two goals, while Harrison Moyer contributed one goal and three assists. Ian Miller also chipped in with a goal and an assist. Alex Crouse won 11 of 16 face offs and scored one goal.

“It means a lot,” Azzanesi said of the victory. “We lost to them earlier in the season, and it just meant the absolute world to these guys. We did this for the other 13 teams that have won this thing. They deserve to keep this streak alive. We deserve it, and it was for them.”

Defensively, Ethan Harding made 12 saves in goal to erase numerous Raiders scoring chances.

As for the Raiders, who had not been held under five goals all season, Twin Valley struggled throughout the night to find the back of the net.

Outside of two goals from Drew Engle, who scored the first goal in each half, the Raiders offense was largely smothered by Wilson’s defense.

“Always play hard all the way through,” Harding said of Wilson’s defensive mentality. “My boys have my back. Trust your teammates, knowing where the shots come from, and putting me in a good position to keep making saves.”

The game quickly got out of hand for the top-seeded Raiders (16-3), who were without one of their top players, Colin Gallagher, a Marquette commit, due to illness.

Sheaffer and the Bulldogs learned upon arriving at Alvernia that the Raiders’ second-leading scorer would not be available.

“It’s a shame,” Sheaffer said of Gallagher’s absence. “Colin is a great player. I would have loved to see him out there tonight.”

Wilson capitalized early and seized control by the end of the first quarter.

Azzanesi scored the Bulldogs’ first goal of the game as Wilson consistently pressured the Raiders’ defense.