BEDFORD — When Ashley Martell took over as Bedford boys’ lacrosse coach shortly before the season, she knew her players might be skeptical about what she brought to the table.
A couple of months later, Martell’s new offensive system is firing on all cylinders, as the No. 13 Bucs roared to an 18-4 win over No. 20 Essex Tech in the first round of the Division 3 statewide tournament.
Bedford (12-7) will face either No. 4 Grafton (17-1) or No. 29 North Reading (6-13) in the Round of 16.
“I think they were skeptical at first, because it’s not everyday you see a woman coaching boys’ lacrosse,” said Martell, a former star at Springfield College who coached Billerica girls’ lacrosse for 12 years.
Advertisement
“But they came in every single day, worked hard, listened to the new plays I put in, and they put it all together today. There was no better time to have one of our best games of the year. The fast break was there, everybody was moving and hitting the right passes, and it wasn’t like that in the beginning of the season.”
Bedford dominated from the opening faceoff with senior Aaron Kreiter winning a couple of early draws to set up goals from seniors Eric Miles (six goals, three assists) and Rich Fedele (three goals).
Miles, Bedford’s all-time leading rusher who is headed to Stonehill to play football, flashed his lacrosse prowess by dictating the offense, allowing sophomore Charles Demeo (four goals), junior Aidan Kelly (three goals, assist), and sophomore James Nichol (two goals, assist) to thrive.
Essex Tech (14-5) was led by Fisher Gadbois (four goals) and goalie Damian Biersteker, who made 12 impressive saves.
The past two seasons Bedford clawed into the state tournament, earning the No. 31 seed a year ago. For Martell, flipping that number in her first season at the helm was a reminder of why coaching can be gratifying.
Advertisement
“When I stepped into the role I didn’t expect it to be long term, but once I got into the role, I realized it didn’t matter who I’m coaching,” said Martell, who is likely the only female coach to win a boys’ lacrosse tournament game in Eastern Mass.
“I love to coach. People are born to do certain things and I love coaching. This has reignited that desire to be there for the kids and get them to be as successful as they can be.”
Division 1 State
BC High 21, Wachusett 2 — The second-seeded Eagles (17-2) cruised in their postseason opener with Patrick Maroney (3 goals, 3 assists) leading all scorers against the 31st-seeded Mountaineers (7-13).
Franklin 20, Methuen 0 — Seniors Tyler Sacchetti and Luke Davis each scored three goals for the fourth-seeded Panthers (18-1). Classmate Jayden Consigli and junior Dylan McEvoy added a pair of goals each in the first-round victory over 29th-seeded Methuen.
Hingham 15, Beverly 6 — Two players (Colin Lasch and Henry Woodyatt) posted hat tricks for the fifth-seeded Harbormen (18-2) and three others (Bobby Pierce, Patrick Browne and Joe Hennessey) tallied two each in a first-round win over the 28th-seeded Panthers.
Marshfield 12, Bishop Feehan 8 — Graham Schofield racked up five goals and Charlie Carroll tacked on three of his own to go along with three helpers for the 10th-seeded Rams (15-4) in a first-round win. In defeat, Nick Yanchuk scored four times for Feehan and Danny Coady made 18 saves for the 23rd-seeded Shamrocks.
Advertisement
North Andover 9, Central Catholic 6 — Senior goalie Matt Roy (20 saves) and sophomore middie Trey Kean (2 goals, 3 assists) paced the eighth-seeded Scarlet Knights (12-7) to their third win of the season over the 25th-seeded Raiders in a first round win.
Division 2 State
Billerica 20, Westborough 4 — Jason Martin (3 goals, 5 assists), Adam Priest (3 goals, 3 assists), Kam Tremblay (3 goals, 2 assists), and Steven Gentile (3 goals) racked up hat tricks for the fifth-seeded Indians (13-6) in a first-round win over the 28th-seeded Rangers (6-11).
Burlington 17, Westfield 7 — Jason Kane and Nolan Jennings scored five goals apiece, while Koby Sloan (2 goals, 3 assists), Jon Jay (2 goals, 4 assists), and Charlie Andriolo (2 goals, 2 assists) also had big games for the No. 12 Red Devils (14-5) in a first-round matchup.
Duxbury 20, West Springfield 5 — Wyatt Glass (six goals, two assists) led all scorers for the third-seeded Dragons (17-3) in a first-round win over the 30th-seeded Terriers. Liam Goodwin and Colin Hulett recorded three-goal games for Duxbury.
Mansfield 19, Whitman-Hanson 6 — Ryan DeGirolamo loomed large in net with 15 saves for the ninth-seeded Hornets (14-6) in a first-round win over the 24th-seeded Panthers (6-12). Cody Gordon had six points (3 goals, 3 assists), and Drew Sacco and Tommy Smith had identical five-point evenings (4 goals, 1 assist). David MacNeil came up with 16 stops in a losing effort for W-H.
Advertisement
Reading 20, Plymouth North 4 — Eamon Centrella (6 goals, 1 assist) and Robbie Granara (1 goal, 7 assists) took flight for the top-seeded Rockets (18-1) in a first-round win over the visiting Eagles. Cullen Granara (4 goals, 2 assists) and Mark Boyle (2 goals, 1 assist) aided the attack for Reading.
Scituate 17, Oliver Ames 5 — Will Robinson deposited six goals for the sixth-seeded Sailors (13-8) in a first-round win over the 27th-seeded Tigers.
Westwood 18, North Attleborough 10 — Senior long-stick middie Donald Varnerin grooved four goals and dished out two assists for the 14th-seeded Wolverines (15-4) in a first-round win over the 19th-seeded Red Rocketeers.
Division 3 State
Apponequet 12, Fairhaven 4 — In a matchup of South Coast Conference foes, the 12th-seeded Lakers (16-1) defeated the 21st-seeded Blue Devils (11-8) for a third time this spring on the strength of five goals from Kenny Wisniewski, two goals and 13 wins at the faceoff-X from Kevin O’Connor, and 10 saves from Hunter Owen.
Falmouth 18, Pembroke 4 — Ollie Partridge (4 goals, 2 assists), Colin Revenaugh (3 goals), and Charlie Hostetter, Rafe Grant, and Evan Hauptmann netted two goals apiece for the seventh-seeded Clippers (13-6) in a first-round matchup.
Medfield 17, Arlington Catholic 5 — Making his first appearance since April 6 due to injury, sophomore Johnny Olenik finished 13 of 19 at the faceoff-X for the fifth-seeded Warriors (13-6) in a first-round win over the 28th-seeded Cougars. Junior Tim Collins stood out on the attack for Medfield, scoring seven goals and assisting on two more, while freshman Braeden Sutton and junior Matt George had three goals apiece.
Advertisement
Newburyport 10, Ashland 4 — Colin Fuller’s hat trick powered the third-seeded Clippers (13-6) past the 30th-seeded Clockers (5-14) in a first-round matchup. Oliver Pons and Carter Scott each scored twice for Newburyport.
Shawsheen 12, Nipmuc 11 — Quinn Guinane made 20 saves, Brayton Carbone scored five goals, Chase Darcey handed out five assists, and Derek Maguire tied the contest with his second goal to force overtime, then Caleb Caceres won the first draw of the extra period and scored to lift the No. 17 Rams (13-6) in the first round.
Wayland 8, Triton 6 — Charlie Lieb scored five goals, Elliott Koopersmith handed out four assists, and Royce Hesterberg made 10 saves for the No. 18 Warriors (6-11) in the first round.
Division 4 State
Abington 17, South Shore Voc-Tech 4 — Hunter Grafton totaled 10 points (6 goals, 4 assists) for the fifth-seeded Green Wave (14-4) in a first-round win over the 28th-seeded Vikings (14-5). Jake Quinn stopped 12 shots and Pat Prewitt had three goals and three assists.
Dover-Sherborn 10, East Bridgewater 3 — Grant Sullivan shined offensively with eight points (3 goals, 5 assists) and Griffin Rosbottom went 13 for 14 at the faceoff-X for the third-seeded Raiders (13-6) in a first-round win over the 30th-seeded Vikings (8-11). Max Niit added three goals and an assist and Luke Sveen notched 12 saves.
Nantucket 16, Seekonk 0 — Junior Cole Chambers surpassed 100 career goals with four strikes for the sixth-seeded Whalers (13-6) in a first-round blanking of the 27th-seeded Warriors. Freshman Arann Hanlon tallied four goals and classmate Jeremy Jenkinson (10 saves) notched a shutout.
Rockland 16, Martha’s Vineyard 7 — More than half of the 11th-seeded Bulldogs’ goals were from the crosse of Lucas Leander, who found the back of the net nine times in a first-round win over the 22nd-seeded Vineyarders. Leander had all four goals for Rockland (15-4) in the second half to help put the Vineyard away in a game played at Abington High School.
Sandwich 15, Stoneham 3 — Avery Richardson struck for three goals with an assist for the second-seeded Blue Knights (12-7) in a first-round win over the 31st-seeded Spartans (3-16). Connor Stack won all seven attempts at the faceoff-X.
Girls’ lacrosse
Division 1 State
Chelmsford 12, Lexington 1 — Amelia Kelley, Taija Bell, and Maggie Loeber tallied three goals apiece for the No. 9 Lions (15-4) in the first-round win over No. 24 Lexington.
Hingham 11, Algonquin 8 — Caroline Connolly scored four goals and Madeline Packard added three points to lead the 16th-seeded Harborwomen (14-8) over the No. 17 Titans in the first round. Hingham advances to face top-seeded Lincoln-Sudbury.
North Andover 11, King Philip 6 — Isa Robinson fired in three goals for the No. 15 Scarlet Knights (15-6) in the first-round home win.
Weymouth 17, Peabody 3 — Megan Doyle stuffed the stat sheet, compiling six points, 14 draw controls, and four caused turnovers to lead the 11th-seeded Wildcats (15-6) over the No. 22 Tanners (13-6) in the first round.
Division 2 State
Billerica 14, Canton 5 — Sara MacLeod buried a team-high six goals, and Audrey Toce chipped in three goals and two assists to lead the 15-seeded Indians (8-11) over the 18th-seeded Bulldogs (9-9) in their first-round showdown.
Burlington 15, Ursuline 4 — Charlize Collins scored five goals and Elisabeth Delorey tacked on four to lead the ninth-ranked Red Devils (14-5) in the first round.
Melrose 10, Westborough 9 — Meg Casey tallied four goals, including the winner, and Jill Frawley tacked on three of her own to lead the 16th-seeded Red Hawks (9-8) over the No. 17 Rangers (7-10) in the first round.
Scituate 17, Agawam 6 — Charlotte Spaulding fired in 10 goals to lead the seventh-ranked Sailors (12-7) over No. 26 Agawam in the first round.
Division 3 State
Medfield 20, Greater Lowell 2 — Kelly Blake, Alex Blake, and Izzy Kittredge scored three goals apiece to lead the second-ranked Warriors (18-3) over the No. 31 Gryphons (9-8) in the first round.
Notre Dame (Worcester) 16, Middleborough 7 — Ava Leahy netted 100th career goal and Maddie Duggan recorded her 100th career point for the No. 15 Rebels (15-6) in the first-round win.
Swampscott 17, Dedham 5 — Senior Brooke Waters scored five goals and added an assist, and junior Coco Clopton added four goals and a helper to lead the No. 9 Big Blue (13-4) over No. 24 Dedham (6-13) in the first-round matchup.
Division 4 State
Ipswich 17, Belchertown 2 — Carolyn Bailey (3 goals, 1 assist), Ella Stein (3 goals, 1 assist), and Estelle Gromko (2 goals) combined to lead the top-seeded Tigers (16-1) over the No. 32 Orioles (7-10) in their first-round matchup.
Sandwich 18, Advanced Math and Science 4 — Ryann Cobban scored a team-high four goals and Sophia Visceglio added three goals and an assist to lead the sixth-seeded Blue Knights (16-4) over the No. 27 Eagles in the first-round matchup.
Tahanto 24, Littleton 11 — Julia Rubinow racked up eight goals and eight assists and tallied her 400th career point to lead the No. 12 Stags (15-2) over the No. 21 Tigers (10-8) in the first-round clash.
— Globe correspondent Jake Levin contributed to this report.