By Nathan Max
WSL Executive Editor
Dartmouth-bound senior attackman Jeff Perkins scored the game-winning goal with 2:53 remaining in sudden-death overtime to give No. 3 St. Mark’s a thrilling, come-from-behind, 9-8 victory over No. 1 Highland Park in a Texas High School Lacrosse League North District Division I game Wednesday night.
Perkins scored from about five yards on an unsettled situation after he took a pass from freshman defenseman Bear Goldstein to give St. Mark’s (4-0) its fourth straight win to start the season and put an end to Highland Park’s 14-game winning streak. The Lions rallied from a four-goal, second-half deficit.
The two-time defending state champion Fighting Scots (1-1) also had their 25-game winning streak against Texas competition snapped. Highland Park suffered its first loss to a team from the Lone Star State since it lost,12-10, to Dallas Episcopal on March 28, 2008.
“That was a great early-season game between two teams that have a lot of mutual respect for each other,” St. Mark’s head coach Hayward Lee said. “Highland Park has become the gold standard of Texas lacrosse. They have great players and superb coaching, and everyone knows they’re the champs until somebody knocks them off in May.”
Perkins and Princeton-bound senior middie Fred Addy each scored a co-team-high two goals, and senior attackman Charles Branch, senior middie Connor Watamull and junior attackman Daniel Trevino all finished with a goal and an assist for St. Mark’s.
Sophomore middie Will Perkins and junior middie Gil Cassagne each had a goal to round out the offense.
Defensively, senior goalie David Christoff saved 11 shots, including one sensational stop that kept St. Mark’s alive in the opening minute of overtime.
In defeat, senior middie Josh Francis registered a game-high four points on two goals and two assists, senior middie Chase Prospere added three points on two goals and one assist and senior attackman Cody Crews scored twice for Highland Park. Senior middie James Mills and junior middie Patrick Campbell both scored once.
In the cage, senior goalie Jordan Lee had 10 saves.
“I thought it was a great game,” Highland Park head coach Derek Thomson said. “Both teams showed a lot of character. St. Mark’s took care of the little things.”
The game was tied, 1-1, at the end of the first quarter, Highland Park led 4-2 at halftime and the Fighting Scots took their biggest lead in the third quarter at 6-2 after Prospere scored with 7:56 remaining.
St. Mark’s clawed back to 6-4 by the end of the third quarter, and the Lions’ momentum continued into the fourth. By the time Cassagne scored with 5:06 remaining, St. Mark’s led 8-7. However, Highland Park drew level and forced overtime on a goal by Francis in the final minute of regulation.
Highland Park won the opening face-off to start overtime, immediately called timeout and got off a quality shot after a St. Mark’s defensive breakdown. But Christoff made the save of the game, with the ball getting caught in his pants for a few seconds.
“David made an exceptional save,” Hayward Lee said. “It took a while for the ball to come out of his shorts, and there was a lot of angst going on, on the bench for both teams.”
St. Mark’s then pushed the ball in transition, and future NCAA Division I player Jeff Perkins made a clutch shot to give St. Mark’s its first win over Highland Park since March 8, 2007. Highland Park had beaten St. Mark’s six straight times before Wednesday.
“When we had them down at 6-2, they showed the character, and they certainly deserve all the credit tonight because they beat us,” Thomson said. “Both teams will benefit from having played tonight.”