Fletcher, Notre Dame-West Haven advance to Class M boys lacrosse final to face Wilton

MILFORD - Notre Dame-West Haven’s Aiden Fletcher and his teammates talked about what it would be like to play in the program’s first state title game. They will get to find out in four short days. Behind four goals from Fletcher and three apiece from Gavin O’Mara and Adrian Fielosh, the tenth-seeded Green Knights advanced to the Class M state championship with an 11-5 victory over third-seeded East Catholic at Jonathan Law Wednesday afternoon. “We took a couple of tough losses at the beginning of the season,” Fletcher said. “After that, we figured it out and kept rolling. The key to our offense is number two (Dominick Basti). He works it through the offense. These are my guys and we just keep rolling.” With the victory, Notre Dame will look to take home the state title when it plays fourth-seeded Wilton, a 14-6 winner over top-seeded Cheshire in the other semifinal, Sunday afternoon at 12:30 p.m. at Sacred Heart University. “They (defense and goalie) have been our backbone all playoffs,” Notre Dame coach A.J. Alessi said. “Our goalie (Christopher Schuler) has been playing awesome the last three games. They have probably been his best three games of the season. They have come in a big spot. Our defense keeps coming up with stops.” For all the offense the Green Knights had, Notre Dame’s defense and the goalkeeping of junior Christopher Schuler were the difference in the game. The Eagles had 45 shots, but most were contested or sailed high or wide of Schuler, who needed to make just 16 saves, many in clutch situations. “Our defense was on its game,” Alessi said. “When we are giving up the right shots, our goalie is going to make saves out there.” The close defense of Morley Phillips, Alexander Labadia, and Jayden Ginsberg, along with the midfield work of Jason Anderson and Kyle Grande kept the Eagles at bay. “I think rebound control was the key and making sure the clear went well,” Schuler said. “The entire defense played great. Defense played amazing. Everybody did very well. It really comes down to who wants it more.” Leading 3-2 at the half, the Green Knights combined its defensive play with a quick-striking offense to take control of the game. Notre Dame outscored East Catholic 5-1 in the quarter, taking an 8-3 lead to the fourth quarter. Fletcher and Fielosh set the tone as Fletcher drilled a one-hopper past East Catholic goalie Owen Bergquist just 28 seconds in, and Fielosh extended the lead to 5-2 just 32 seconds later. “It’s the offense we have been working on all year so when we came out it was 3-2,” Fletcher said. “We just kept running in and getting our looks. We just kept putting them on net and we just kept rolling.” While East Catholic’s Brady Hemenway scored with 7:27 left in the quarter to get the Eagles within 5-3, the Eagles never got closer. Fletcher scored his fourth of the game for a 6-3 advantage with 3 minutes left in the third, and O’Mara followed 54 seconds later for a four-goal advantage. When Fielosh scored his second of the game with 1:10 to go in the third, the Green Knights were 12 minutes away from their first state championship appearance. “Our offense was definitely not clicking on all cylinders and their goalie (Schuler) is really, really good,” East Catholic coach Patrick Bushnell said. “It’s a combination of the two things. We weren’t placing our shots in the cage. We executed our game plan until we had to press at the end. We knew they were dangerous on offense. We just weren’t able to put the period on the end of the sentence on our possessions and finishing with a goal.” The Eagles had one final flurry when Colin Heslin scored with a man up 1:15 into the fourth, but Schuler denied Andrew DeCorleto in front three minutes later. O’Mara scored twice within 50 seconds, and Fielosh got his third of the game with 4:32 remaining to end any hopes of an East Catholic comeback. PLAYER OF THE GAME Aiden Fletcher, Notre Dame: Senior scored four goals, including two in the deciding third quarter. QUOTABLE “We had guys who hadn’t really played much this year play today. They stepped up. It was a complete effort. It’s our first time in program history. These guys talked about it all al year and all offseason. For the program, for sure, it is huge, but also for these kids is unbelievable.” — Notre Dame coach A.J. Alessi on advancing to the program’s first state title NOTRE DAME 11, EAST CATHOLIC 5 NOTRE DAME2 1 5 3 - 11 EAST CATHOLIC1 1 1 2 - 5 Goals: 1st Qtr: N - Aiden Fletcher 9:21; E - AJ Bushnell 6:33; N - Dominick Basti - 4:41; 2nd Qtr: E - William Bergquist 8:17; N - Aiden Fletcher 2:52; 3rd Qtr: N - Aiden Fletcher 11:32; N - Adrian Fielosh 11:00; E - Brady Hemenway 7:27; N - Aiden Fletcher 3:00; N - Gavin O’Mara 2:06; N - N - Adrian Fielosh 1:10; 4th Qtr: E - Colin Heslin 10:45; N - Gavin O’Mara 6:46; N - Gavin O’Mara 5:56; N - Adrian Fielosh 4:32; E - AJ Bushnell 3:29. Shots: N - 25; E - 45; Saves: N: Christopher Schuler - 16; E: Owen Bergquist - 14.

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