Boys' Lacrosse: Opening Day Games to Watch (4/6)

Unlike Volleyball and Baseball, this will include only games for opening day.  A separate post will cover the rest of the week.

Wednesday 4/6

St. Joseph @ Darien @ 4pm
-What a great way to start the season!  St. Joseph is one of the favorites to win Class S this year behind midfielders Pat Corcoran (signed with Quinnipiac) and Pat Mulligan, both of which made All-State last year.  Darien is the team everyone, literally everyone, expects to win Class M this year (they are the only team to do so since its creation in 2006 when the CIAC moved from the division to the class structure) behind nine returning starters from last year's championship team, six of which will be playing DI lax next year.  The most notable players for Darien are All-American Eric Parnon (Maryland) on defense, long-stick middies Bayless/Baylis Treen (All-State; Lafayette) and Justin Shaw (Loyola) and goalie Dylan Torey (Quinnipiac).  J.P. Walsh also made All-State last year at short-stick defensive middie and oh, how could we forget the now-junior sensation of Case Matheis on attack; he was an All-American last year, is the #3 junior in the nation according to ESPN Rise and has committed to Duke for 2013.  Darien is going to be fun to watch this year!

Old Lyme @ Old Saybrook @ 4
-In some Class S action, these two Shoreline Conference rivals open up against each other, just like last season!

Simsbury @ Joel Barlow @ 430
-Simsbury is one of the better teams in the north this year and they start off against a team with serious chance at winning Class S this year, Joel Barlow.  Simsbury plays in Class L and will be solid again this year but in this match-up right here, Class means nothing!

Ridegfield @ Somers (NY) @ 6
-Ridgefield played Somers last year too, at home, in a game that took two overtimes to finally end in a 13-14 loss.  You know they want revenge, especially going to Somers' home field this time!  Somers is a very good team in New York, about just as good as Ridgefield is in Connecticut.   Ridgefield lost a lot of good players from last year so this will also be a good barometer this year's talent level; they feature the #25 recruit in the nation, according to ESPN Rise, and #4 long-stick midfielder Matt Shannon (he will play at UNC next year)!

Cheshire @ Hand @ 7
-These SCC teams will be ready for each other and to show everyone else in the state what they've got this year.  Hand is among the short list of teams that can contest with Darien in Class M this year and that is because of middies Chad Crisco and Casey Dowd (nasty at face-offs) and then Richie Ortiz in goal.  Cheshire, on the other hand, is the defending Class L Champions, after upsetting Fairfield Prep, and they return All-American Torrey Martone (headed to UMass) on defense and two other All-State players from last year: Joe Klemenz (defense) and Evan Gaudio (long-stick middie).

East Lyme @ Guilford @ 7
-A good Class M match-up, these two teams finished 5th and 6th, both 11-5, last year.  Neither team wants to begin the season with a loss so expect them both to bring their best game so they can start off the season strong.