Jack Lingo 30-plus team wins Ocean City Lacrosse Classic

The Jack Lingo 30-plus lacrosse team took top honors in the Men’s Trident Division at the 27th annual Ocean City Lacrosse Classic Aug. 11 at Northside Park. It is the second consecutive year and third championship for the Rehoboth-based masters team.

The Lingo team outscored its opponents 57-11. They went 4-0 in pool play, then defeated MLL-Shamrocks Lacrosse Club 14-1 in the semifinals and Kooper’s Tavern out of Baltimore 10-2 in the finals.

“I've never played with a better group of guys,” said defenseman and Cape assistant coach Nick Scroggs. “I believe what has made this team successful through the summers has been a truly family atmosphere. No one wants to let the team down, and guys show that by how hard they play on the field.”

The Lingo 30-plus squad jumped out to a 5-0 lead in the first half and cruised to a 10-2 victory in the Sunday finals. Julian Maziluski dominated at the face-off circle, winning nearly 70 percent of the draws. Goalies Matt Baran and Chris Petrush teamed for the weekend’s six victories.

“This isn't a team that gets thrown together with a bunch of random guys,” said Baran, who has been playing with the Lingo squad since 2007. “Jack [Lingo] has always done a great job of incorporating some new players, but we have always had the core group who has been around since the beginning. I knew from the first game that we were going to be solid. The defense had excellent communication all weekend and made it very difficult for opposing teams to get many good looks. I felt like me and Rush [Chris Petrush] were seeing the ball well, so because of that and how we dictated play on the defensive end, we were able to force the other teams into tough shooting spots. We probably communicated even better in the championship than in the others, and were able to get out to an early lead, which always helps. This was a true team win as it always is with Lingo. Everyone does their job well and we see how it goes. We will be back next year, and I can't wait to play with these guys again.”

The defense was held down by long poles Dave Mushrush, James Cramp, John Dicamillo, Jim Derrick, Geoff Ianniri, Jim Kostack, Mike Freudiger and Scroggs. The offensive output came from Joe Cahill, Matt Hickman, Chris Gill, Jack Lingo, Dan Deckelbaum, Jordan Kenney, Spencer Steele, Mike Richardson, Greg Furshman, Eric Seifert and Anthony Lucchetto.

“It was an all-out effort by the entire team,” said defenseman Mushrush. “Matt [Hickman] and Rush [Chris Petrush] played out of their minds, and the offense and defense played like a team that plays together year-round. I look forward to playing with these guys all year.”

“The team played great throughout the whole tournament,” said team captain Jack Lingo. “I thought it was a complete team effort from the Jack Lingo Realtor squad.”

For more info, go to oclaxclassic.org.