A festering wound was opened yet again on Saturday evening in Selby Stadium.
For the third straight season, the Saint Ignatius prep lacrosse team knocked on the door but could not push through in the state title game. The Wildcats lost to the St. Xavier Bombers, 10-9, to heartbreakingly finish as the OHSAA runners-up again.
In the offseason, the Wildcats dressed the wounds of last season's heart-wrenching loss to Archbishop Moeller in double overtime. The program brought in new head coach Gary Cintron and developed a wealth of young talent. The Lax Cats focused all season on the singular goal of a state title, dominating local competition and working hard through one of the toughest schedules in the state, if not the country.
It was not enough. For the third time this season, the Wildcats lost by just one goal to St. Xavier, this defeat the hardest of all to bear.
The contest began with the pomp and circumstance one would expect in a heavyweight title bout. Michael Boehm opened the scoring with a turnaround goal at 9:52. The Bombers responded soon after to knot the game, but Max Maruna pounced with a tally to steal the lead just 90 seconds later. The Bombers again tied it at 2 with a marker at 6:12.
Boehm found twine again at the five minute mark, followed shortly by a Merick Hartley nip from the near-side 20-yard line after he took a pass from X. St. Xavier did not allow the lead to last long, though, netting two goals in the final couple minutes of the quarter.
The scoring in the second began with a Kyle Katigbak ripper from the middle of the slot. The middle of the period saw extended possessions from each team, eventually resulting in Boehm's hat trick goal with 7:54 to play.
Four minutes later, the Wildcats took a timeout to regroup after a Bomber possession. The break aided the Bombers more than the Cats, as St. Xavier narrowed the deficit to one a couple minutes later.
The final minute saw plenty of excitement. Hartley did the job with a roaming tally with 26.2 seconds to play, sniping the net on a beautiful shot. But the Bombers took momentum into the break with a breakaway goal with 8.2 seconds remaining, setting the score at 7-6 Cats at half.
The first portion of the third stanza featured lengthy possessions by both squads. The Bombers finally found the back of the net at 6:39, followed shortly after by a Connor Cmiel goal. Hartley then tabbed his hat-trick tally with 4:13 left in the third, seemingly giving the Wildcats some needed energy.
But the Bombers replied with two important goals. St. Xavier scored twice in the final 2:17, knotting the contest at 9. The surge halted the Wildcats' momentum and set the stage for a chess match of a fourth quarter.
Each team made adjustments, but a critical one by the Bombers was a change in defending Boehm. St. Xavier started assigning a long-pole defender to limit Boehm on the near-side, and forcing the sophomore to center the ball, where the Bombers had defenders bunched and ready.
The Cats and Bombers each enjoyed extended time in the offensive zone, but the defenses and goalies weathered every storm. The Wildcats, in particular, held the ball and peppered the Bombers with shots for about four minutes in the later stages in the quarter. But the Bombers thwarted the attempts and broke down the Wildcats with 1:46 remaining. Duke Alf snuck by a Wildcat defender and beat a sliding Cat to find twine and the eventual game-winning goal.
The Wildcats won the ensuing faceoff and promptly called timeout. On the next possession, the Wildcats set up a shot for midfielder Ian Flynn in the middle. The senior ripped a hard, promising shot, but it hit the shin of Kyle Katigbak, who was screening the goalie to limit his vision. The Bombers retrieved the rebound, took it down the field, and burning a timeout with 47.8 seconds left.
The Cats desperately tried to steal the ball in the final seconds, but to no avail. The Bombers walked away with the 10-9 win, St. Xavier's third one-goal win over the Wildcats in 2018.
Following the heartbreaking loss, the Wildcats accepted the runner-up trophy and exchanged hugs. The loss was not an easy one to bear.
The defeat ends the exceptional careers of a host of Wildcats. Anthony Ameo, Jeff Outcalt, Ian Flynn, Connor Sims, Max Maruna, Chris Larsen, Bain Kurtz, Noah Catanzarite, Kyle Katigbak, Liam Nigro, Patrick Koehler, Colin Allen, Bill Beegan, and Michael Donahue will be dearly missed.
The Wildcats have a bright future, with an exceptionally talented rising junior class and a number of talented rising seniors. But for a while, this loss will sting.