If you score eight goals in a game, that stands out. And with eight goals, they were happening frequently enough that to call them timely might seem silly. Let’s consider the moments, though. Cheshire scored first and had the early momentum in this one. Shannehan would score a natural hat trick in the first half, going on to finish the game with eight goals and two assists. He scored just about every which way you can in a lacrosse game. He scored on extra man with time and room shots. He scored isolated on his man, beating his matchup and scoring before help could arrive. He scored off-ball, following rotations and filling space to get a look at the goal inside. On the game-winner in OT, he ran off a pick to free his hands as he swept across the top of the goal then fired to the far pipe. Shannehan’s strength is his athleticism and versatility. It’s hard to game plan for him because he does so many things well. He had the whole bag of tricks working in this one.

It hasn’t been easy to see Shannehan over the past year. A hip injury forced him to miss a significant chunk of time at the end of last lacrosse season, and caused him to miss all but two tournaments last summer. But anyone who did see him saw the potential in the lefty. His versatility is his biggest strength. You can expect to see Shannehan play midfield or attack for Fairfield Prep this spring. As a midfielder, he’s an immediate mismatch with a short stick. He can take a defensive midfielder to an invert or to the low wing, and from there get topside with speed as a dodger. One staff who did get to see plenty of Luke was Boston U., and the Terriers had already secured a commitment from Luke’s older brother Tim. Both brothers are dynamic dodgers and scorers. Shannehan has been having an exceptional fall. Fairfield Prep graduated a stacked senior class a year ago, opening the door for some underclassmen to take over and drive the offense. Expect Shannehan to be one of those players.