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Sports

Staples Boys Lacrosse Rolls Over Norwalk

Greenberg scores four goals as Wreckers drub Bears, 15-1, to improve to 15-0.

Behind four goals from senior captain Nate Greenberg and a hat trick from senior defensemen Keith Gelman,  the Staples Wreckers boys lacrosse team eased its way to a 15-1 victory over the Norwalk Bears on Saturday afternoon at Staples High School.

With the win,  the Wreckers improved to 15-0 on the season and 10-0 in the FCIAC.

Staples, which joins Darien as the only team without a loss in FCIAC play, will look to complete an undefeated regular season at Fairfield Ludlowe on Wednesday.

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The eight seniors on the team shined Saturday on Senior Day as they accounted for seven of the nine goals scored in the first half.

As they did last Saturday against St. John the Baptist, the Wreckers got off to a fast start,  thanks in part to two goals by Greenberg within the first five minutes of the game.

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Hard hitting in the defensive zone from junior Matt Yeager and senior Jack Ambrose kept the Bears away from the net, allowing the home team to dictate the tempo early on.

The Wreckers scored five goals before the first period ended. After Greenberg's early flury, goals by junior attack Charlie Ross, senior Kyle Mendelson and junior Kip Orban gave the Wreckers plenty of breathing room.

The second period featured much of the same. Norwalk goalie Rob Romano stood no chance against the fierce offensive attack of Staples. The Wreckers waited just two minutes to score their next goal as a nice pass from Ross provided Gelman the lane to score his first goal of the day.

The crisp passing from the Wreckers in the offensive zone allowed them to penetrate through the heart of the Bears' defense.

Off a centering pass from senior Jeff Kelly, Greenberg cut into the middle of the box and fired the ball right between the legs of  Romano to make it 7-0. 

Just a minute later,  the senior attack flipped the ball behind his back and past the stick of Romano,  giving him four goals on the day.   

Gelman capped off the second quarter on a high note by taking advantage of a major mental mistake from Norwalk. The senior defensemen knocked Romano's stick out of his hands and put the ball into the empty net to make the score 9-0 heading into halftime.

The Wreckers' commanding first half allowed coach Paul McNulty the opportunity to give every player in uniform the chance to play.

 For many, it was the first opportunity to play major minutes this season. It certainly was a good sign for the future  as the Wreckers' reserves scored six goals on the starting Norwalk goalkeeper.

Junior attack Ryan Hartman got the scoring started early in the third quarter with a wrap-around goal after blowing right by his defender.

Despite the substitutions to the Wreckers' defense, Norwalk's offense could never get into a groove as constant pressure and multiple defenders attacking the ball handler proved to be too much for the Bears to handle.

That point was made evident after Gelman stole the ball away from starting attack Derrick Edwards and took it coast to coast for his third goal of the day. For the Wreckers,  it was the first time this season that a player other than Orban, Kelly or Greenberg had a hat trick.

Before Norwalk finally got on the board late in the third quarter, junior Aaron Wallace and sophomore Peter Paul each added a goal of their own.

With the win, the Wreckers improved to 15-0 on the season and 10-0 in the FCIAC, solidifying their spot as the top team in the FCIAC standings.

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