Jake Davis, Owen Palmieri power Franklin boys’ lacrosse past Newton North

Jake Davis and Owen Palmieri stuck home four goals apiece as No. 18 Franklin boys’ lacrosse cruised to a 17-8 victory against Newton North on Saturday afternoon. Max Schaeffer led the Tigers with a hat trick.

Senior Jacob Alexander (two goals, one assist) had another one of his signature dominant performances at the face-off X for Franklin, going 24-for-26. Matt Lazzaro also notched a hat trick on the afternoon for the host Panthers (2-0).

“They are just so unselfish,” said Franklin head coach Lou Verrochi on his team following the win. “They are looking for one more all the time. They’re just moving the ball really well. Those extra possessions really helped. Jacob Alexander is probably the best face-off guy in the state. Getting that many possessions in a game is huge, so I thought he did an excellent job.”

Lazzaro and Alexander opened the game with back-to-back goals to give Franklin a 2-0 lead just 34 seconds in. Newton North was able to trim the deficit to one, 4-3, with less than a minute to play in the quarter following goals by Chris Claflin and Hunter Adam. However, a buzzer-beating laser from the top of the box by Palmieri extended the Franklin lead to 5-3 heading into the second.

Schaeffer cut the deficit to 5-4 for Newton North early in the second, but the Panthers responded with a 3-0 run to take an 8-4 lead into halftime.

The Alexander effect proved to be too much for Newton North to handle in the second half, as Franklin continued to pile up possessions. Palmieri buried a nifty behind-the-back goal to make it an 11-5 game.

Three straight goals by Lazzaro, Alexander, and Nitin Chaudhury extended the lead to 14-6 at the end of three, allowing Franklin to rest some starters in the fourth and cruise to the nine-goal win.

North Reading 11, Gloucester 3 — Senior Michael Sheridan had five goals and an assist to lead the Hornets (1-3).

Rivers 8, Thayer 3 — Senior Pat Mahoney had nine saves for the Red Wings (6-1).

Xaverian 15, Cohasset 12 — Junior Jack Daoust had four goals to lead the Hawks (2-1).

Baseball

Catholic Memorial 7, Lexington 3 — Junior Paul Guiney went 2-for-4 with two doubles and pitched three scoreless innings in relief to lead the Knights (2-0).

Nauset 6, St. Mary’s 5 — Mac LaBarge led the Warriors (2-2) to a victory over the Spartans by finishing 3-for-3 with a triple and 3 RBIs.

Newburyport 2, Masconomet 1 — Senior Casey McLaren pitched seven innings giving up just one hit and one run to lead the Clippers (2-1).

St. Johns (Shrewsbury) 7, BC High 5 — Andrew Eppinger went 3-for-3 with a pair of doubles to boost the Pioneers.

St. Sebastian’s 8, Groton 6 — Junior Matt Joyce allowed one run and recorded five strikeouts over six innings for the undefeated Arrows (7-0). Senior Drew Dorsey went 3-for-4 to contribute at the plate.

Thayer 9, Rivers 5 — Senior Mark Monahan and junior Jack Thorbahn each went 3-for-4 at the plate, driving in two runs to lead the Tigers (5-2).

Latin Academy 5, Boston Latin 4 — Kevin Bruen singled home the winning run in the bottom of the 7th inning to propel the Dragons (3-1). Cam Kelly dazzled on the mound, throwing a complete game while striking out 10.

Softball

Austin Prep 3, Peabody 2 — Sophomore Amanda Patti launched a solo shot in the top of the seventh inning to give the Cougars (2-1) a narrow victory over the Tanners.

Arlington Catholic 8, Billerica 7 — Sophomore Bianca Burke hit a walk-off single as the Cougars (3-0) rallied from a five-run deficit in the 7th inning.