The Oswego River Hawks men’s box lacrosse team improved their record to 3-0 with a close, hard-fought 15-14 win over the visiting Thousand Island Spirits on Friday night at the Crisafulli Rink at Fort Ontario.
The non-league game was filled with lead changes, penalties, and big goals.
Oswego High School graduate Carson Colucci got the home team on the scoreboard just eight seconds into the game, scoring an unassisted goal off the opening face-off. The River Hawks then scored the next three goals in the first five minutes to take a 4-0 lead, their fourth goal coming off an unassisted effort from Oswego HS’s Jack Rice.
But the Spirits responded, scoring the only two goals of the final ten minutes in the quarter, their second goal coming with just three seconds remaining in the quarter.
The Spirits continued to recover, and eventually took a 7-6 lead by the end of the first half, led by former G Ray Bodley lacrosse standout Alex Cook with two goals and an assist. The River Hawks got two goals – one from Colucci and the other an unassisted breakaway from Oswego HS alum Derek Kohut.
The first half was filled with penalties on both teams, as the River Hawks were called for six two-minute minors and the Spirits were called for eight.
The second half saw the home team edge Thousand Islands 5-4 behind three goals from Tom Costanza and one each from Will Hardy and Chris Deisenroth, tying the score at 11 after three quarters.
The fourth quarter saw Oswego take the lead on Costanza’s fifth goal of the game, but the Spirits came back to tie it at 12 on another goal from Cook. The River Hawks re-took the lead on another Costanza goal, but the Spirits scored the next two goals to take a 14-13 lead with just over six minutes to play.
The River Hawks responded when Hardy scored the tying goal with 3:54 remaining in the game, and then Colucci scored what proved to be the game-winner on an unassisted effort with 1:31 remaining on the clock.
Oswego finished the game with nine penalties, while the Spirits were called for 17 minors. Oswego’s Jack Beck played 60 minutes in goal, recording 31 saves for a 68.9 save percentage. The Spirits changed goalies just a few minutes into the game, as Jeremy Fink (three saves, four goals against, 42.9 %) was replaced by Kanathonson Horn-David, who registered 43 saves and allowed just 11 goals (79.6%).
Costanza finished the game with six goals, while Hardy had three goals and three assists. Other scorers for the River Hawks were Colucci (3-0), Thomas Berry (0-2), Rice (1-0), Kohut (1-0), Deisenroth (1-0), and Cory Tilton (0-1).
For the Spirits, Jake Rice led all scorers with four goals and three assists. Cook finished with four goals and one assist, while Ty Hill (2-0) and Dallas Thomas (1-1) had two points apiece. Six other Spirits registered one point.
The Spirits will be back in town this Friday night for both teams’ first league game of the season. Thousand Island defeated the Paper City Oaks on Saturday night and are currently 1-2, while the River Hawks will be putting their unblemished 3-0 overall record on the line.
Friday night’s game time is 7:30 PM at the Crisafulli Rink at Fort Ontario. There is a $5 admission fee for those 18 and older; admission is free for those 17 and younger.
