Seahawks lax outlasts Blue Raiders on Senior Night

A trio of hat tricks helped the Sussex Academy boys’ lacrosse team hold off a late surge from Woodbridge on Senior Night for a 10-6 win May 9, the day before the Seahawks took down Newark Charter 8-5 for their third win in a row.

Before the Henlopen South champions squared off against a shorthanded Blue Raiders squad, they honored six seniors. Jahmarhi Davis, Aiden Villar, Reili Roblero-Reyes, Ben Warren, Jaxon Laux and Josh Jovel-Velasquez were announced with their families and reflected on their time with the team.

“Almost all these players pretty much picked up the sport when they got here; some of them played when they were a little kid, some of them played here and there tossing around,” said coach Andrew Fox. “This group really embraced my culture of: We are a team, we're in this together.”

Despite Woodbridge scoring the opening goal, the Seahawks dominated the first half, leading 7-1 at the break. Woodbridge refused to go down without a fight, cutting the lead to 9-5 after the third quarter.

Sussex Academy turned the faucet down to a trickle in the fourth to come away with the 10-6 victory.

“We should’ve put it away a lot earlier; we had it,” Fox said.

In the victory, junior Chase Ballinger led all Seahawks in points with three goals and two assists, while freshman Clayton Emplit and sophomore Anthony Tattoli finished second with three goals and one assist apiece.

Seniors Warren and Jovel-Velasquez each had a goal, while Jovel-Velasquez picked up two assists. Jackson Hagy had 16 saves in the contest.

Newark Charter

Sophomore Gideon Sammons returned to action against Newark Charter May 10, when he lit the lamp four times and had one helper to lead Sussex Academy in the 8-5 victory. Ballinger remained scorching hot with a goal and three assists. The junior is up to 35 points with 13 goals and 23 assists. Villar had an assist, while Warren notched a goal. Tattoli tallied his team-leading 21st goal in the effort. Hagy had 10 saves.

The Seahawks will host Milford at 5:30 p.m., Thursday, May 15, before heading to Cape at 11 a.m., Saturday, May 17, to play the Henlopen Conference Championship game.