Recap and Standouts: McDonogh (Md.) Tops Boys’ Latin (Md.), 12-10

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Sparks always fly whenever Boys' Latin and McDonogh square off in the regular season, making spectators (and the team on the wrong side of the game's outcome) yearn for a rematch in the MIAA playoffs. <br><br>By now, we can all essentially count on that rematch happening. Dating back to the 2010 season, the Lakers and Eagles have played each other in the MIAA playoffs every May except for one season.<br><br>On Tuesday afternoon, McDonogh prevailed 12-10 in another thriller between the Baltimore-area powerhouses after fending off the Lakers' late comeback attempt. It was an all-around impressive showing from the Eagles, who uncharacteristically dropped back-to-back games in mid-May before bouncing back in its subsequent two outings. Quite frankly, the product that McDonogh put out on the field on Tuesday was apples and oranges relative to what the Eagles showed during their consecutive losses to Calvert Hall and Spalding. <br><br>Defensively, the Eagles were dialed in and well-prepared for everything that the Lakers threw at them, a result of tireless scouting. Seniors [player_tooltip player_id='14863' first='Max' last='Allen'] and [player_tooltip player_id='14944' first='Paul' last='McLucas'] were both superb, making life difficult for their respective matchups, communicating at a high level, and coming up big with a plethora of key groundballs. In goal, five-star junior [player_tooltip player_id='14549' first='Aidan' last='Seibel'] was up to the task once again with a quiet seven-save campaign, while sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='20157' first='Ciaran' last='Sweeney'] put together a yeoman's effort at the face-off X to come up clutch when McDonogh needed possessions. <br><br>On the offensive end, the Eagles seemed to step up whenever the Lakers lessened their deficit, with McDonogh getting hat tricks from [player_tooltip player_id='14858' first='Luke' last='Miller'] and [player_tooltip player_id='14525' first='Bogue' last='Hahn'] (with his last tally coming on an empty net) and two-goal outings from sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='20017' first='Hunter' last='Metz'], top-ranked junior [player_tooltip player_id='14510' first='Brendan' last='Millon'] (2G/2A), and [player_tooltip player_id='14823' first='Ben' last='Firlie'], who was quick to rave about the rivalry. <br><br>"It's just always a close game no matter what, and I think this is easily the best in the MIAA, if not the entire country," said Firlie, a Georgetown commit who was recently named a Wave I New Balance Senior All-American. "I know BL has St. Paul's [as its main rival], and I know we have Gilman, but this is the rivalry."<br><br>If history repeats itself, we'll see another edition in a few weeks. It's only right. <br></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["20157"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"Heading into the year, the Eagles' face-off unit was very much an unknown and considered the team's biggest question mark following the graduation of three-year starter Zach Hayashi. Fortunately for McDonogh, Sweeney has answered the bell and adjusted admirably throughout the season, coming into Tuesday's game having won 57 percent on the year. He certainly held his own against the Lakers' [player_tooltip player_id='14833' first='Parker' last='Hoffman'], considered one of the more quick-handed draw men in the country. And while the stats were still in BL's favor at the end of the day, Sweeney's timely wins and gritty work at the X keyed the McDonogh victory.rnrnLook no further than the third quarter, which saw Sweeney take 6-of-7 and win five to himself. Relentless when going after groundballs, the sophomore did a fantastic job countering when Hoffman won the initial clamp, but also proved to be quick to the whistle and calm under pressure, winning out in front, behind, or getting the ball to his wings. Sweeney's two wins in the final minute of the third quarter led to two McDonogh goals to put the Eagles up 10-6, and although he ran out of gas in the fourth as the Lakers attempted to come back, the day was a 'coming-of-age' moment for Sweeney in his young career.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_1_player":["14526"],"_player_evaluations_1_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_1_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_1_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_1_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_1_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"The 1-on-1 battles between Higgins and McDonogh star defender [player_tooltip player_id='14863' first='Max' last='Allen'] were a pleasure to watch on Tuesday, and throughout the game, each got the best of their counterpart. The straw that stirs the drink for the BL offense this season, Higgins was always bound to get his, and the Lakers utilized pick play as much as possible to get their quarterback's hands free. Operating behind the cage, he tossed an assist to [player_tooltip player_id='19282' first='George' last='Insley'] just 39 seconds into the game when McDonogh misplayed a pick, then had another helper to [player_tooltip player_id='19287' first='Colin' last='Kenney'] late in the half thanks to a razor pick.rnrnIf Allen won the first half, then Higgins certainly won more battles in the final 24 minutes. In the third quarter, Higgins caught Allen taking a poor angle and approach, got underneath, and netted a pretty back-hander. In the fourth, he wisely pulled Allen out to 10 yards above GLE and beat him to the cage, then added an EMO assist to [player_tooltip player_id='14809' first='Spencer' last='Ford'] later in the final stanza to finish the day with two goals and three assists. I've always been a huge fan of Higgins, but at this point, I'm even more bullish on the California native's ability to serve as Maryland's QB upon his arrival in College Park. Always playing under control and dodging with his head up, he attacks tough matchups with confidence, doles out nifty passes, and puts in work in the riding game. He's super quick, and even though he's on the smaller side, Higgins never shies away from physicality and does an excellent job of keeping turnovers to a minimum.","_player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_2_player":["14858"],"_player_evaluations_2_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_2_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_2_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_2_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_2_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_2_evaluation":"After missing the first four games of the season due to injury, Miller has been phenomenal ever since his return against Chaminade (N.Y.) in late March. I'm stating the obvious here, but McDonogh is an entirely different team with the four-year starter in the lineup. In the Eagles' 8-7 loss at Calvert Hall on April 12, Miller was responsible for three goals during the Eagles' early 6-0 run.rnrnThe Notre Dame recruit made a similar impact early in the game at BL, and more importantly, helped the Eagles get the win. This time around, Miller's three goals came in just eight minutes and 45 seconds of game action during the first half to help the Eagles ultimately go into the break with a strong 6-3 advantage. On his first tally, with his defender keying in on his dominant left hand at X, Miller put it back in his right hand and curled around the crease. Less than two minutes later, he hung his man up, faked a dodge to one side then came around the other side of the crease, faked, and finished with his left. His last goal of the game came when he took his man from the 30-yard line and darted to the cage for a finish in-tight, and then added an assist late in the third quarter. Overall, the maturation of Miller's game has been beyond noticeable, and I feel strongly about his ability to be in the mix for early PT once he gets to Notre Dame. If I'm being honest, when he made his initial commitment, I wouldn't have made such a prediction, but that's a credit to how hard he's worked and how well he's developed.","_player_evaluations_2_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":3,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"edit","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-662ab5fc88818"} /-->