The boys varsity lacrosse team won 17-5 against Grove City at home Tuesday,March 28.
Senior JT Stukey said the game started out slow, but the team was able to get into a groove and come out on top.
The first quarter began with both teams scoring several times. By the end of the first quarter, the score was 4-3 and the team was losing by one.
Sophomore Erno Merritt said the team’s main objective at the beginning of the game was to take it slow by keeping possession and not allowing Grove City to take an early lead.
“The plan was to move the ball as much as possible and include everyone on the offense while the defense was trying to settle in,” Merritt said.
In the second quarter, Bexley started to take control of the game. They allowed zero goals and scored an additional six points to be up 9-4 at half time.
Stukey said being able to talk to the team between the first and second quarter helped them stay motivated and keep their energy high.
“At the break, we talked things over and picked up the energy on the bench,” he said. “It really helped the guys on the field execute to the best of their ability.”
During the second half, the team scored eight more goals to secure the victory. By
the end of the game, sophomore Owen Beery had four goals and three assists. Additionally, Stukey scored three goals with four assists.
Stukey said the most memorable moment for him occurred in the fourth quarter, when senior Walter Giller won his first varsity face-off.
“Seeing one of our guys take on a new challenge and succeed felt like a good way to cap off this win early in the season,” Stukey said.
Beery said he thinks the team’s cooperation allowed for the victory.
“It really just came down to our ability to pass the ball,” Beery said. “We were making unselfish plays and we definitely allowed Grove City to make the mistakes for us.”
Stukey added the team hoped to avoid errors going into the game.
“We needed to ensure that we had no unforced turnovers and no major mistakes that could lead to a goal against us,” he said. “Once we were able to stop worrying about making mistakes, we were able to
start picking up our scoring and eventually get the win.”
Merritt said one offensive play made by Beery and sophomore William Reich highlighted the team’s cooperation with each other.
“We had one goal where Owen Beery crossed up a defender behind the goalie making him fall,” Merritt explained. “This allowed him to pass it to Will Reich for a wide open step down that just squeezed past the goalie.”
Beery said in future games, the team could be more aggressive from the beginning.
“Coming into the game, we wanted to come out hard and get an early lead,” he said.
Stukey added he thought the team could have scored more goals early on in the game.
“Having energy from the jump would definitely be better for the team,” he explained. “Not being able to get into the first quarter or half can make it extremely difficult.”
Published and digitized April 2026.
