By Jim Stout
MaxPreps.com
WESTON, Conn. --- Their coach is the son of a Fairfield County lacrosse icon. Their best player is going to Duke and is the grandson of the winningest basketball coach in Connecticut history.
The school itself has already won two state titles during the current school season and captured another the previous year, with many of the same players having participated in one or more of the championships.
If it appears as though the stars are falling into perfect alignment for the Weston High boys lacrosse team, there's good reason for it.
They are.
Oh yes, one other thing: A year ago, with a junior-oriented team, Weston came within an overtime goal of reaching the state Class S lacrosse championship game, a remarkable achievement for a relatively new program.
Now the Trojans have 12 time-tested seniors, a No. 1 seeding in the tournament and a 16-3 record, with their three losses coming by a compiled total of four goals against considerably larger schools.
There is nothing ambiguous about their intentions.
"We're here to win this thing," senior defenseman Tom Montelli said. "This is what we've been working toward for three years."
Under the direction of third-year coach Alex Whitten, Weston began its pursuit of the 2007 state Class S boys lacrosse title on Saturday by routing Granby Memorial, 17-3. The Trojans scored the final 13 goals in the game after No. 16 Granby (8-10) had shown great resolve in staying within 4-3 of Weston early in the second quarter.
Whitten, whose father, Guy, developed a lacrosse dynasty at Wilton decades earlier and helped lay foundation for the sport's 21st century explosion, said Granby's early resolve demonstrated the ever-growing nature of lacrosse in Connecticut.
"It's exciting to see any kind of growth in the sport and obviously Granby is helping grow lacrosse in their upstate area," Whitten said.
"They're a new program and you expect them to make some mistakes, kind of like we did a few years ago when we were starting out. We're at the stage now where we try to take advantage of that."
Weston fell behind on the first possession of the game and led by only 4-3 early in the second quarter before Montelli, the grandson of St. Joseph High basketball legend Vito Montelli, took control. The 6-foot-3 Duke recruit whistled home two straight goals from the left flank to give Weston breathing room at 6-3, then set up leading scorer Gordie Zimmerman to make it 7-3 at intermission.
The Trojans blew the game open with an uncontested six-goal third quarter as Morgan Faller, Jeff Ledwick and Robbie Cordisco all scored twice.
"We talked before the game about how we were playing a team that was the 16 seed and came from an area that wasn't really know for lacrosse and how we'd have to play at our level," Montelli said.
"I guess it took us the first half to realize that. We came out in the second half and shut them down and did what we're capable of. We played up to our capabilities in the second half."
Montelli and Ledwick were among the Weston lacrosse players who helped their school win its first state basketball championship last winter as the Trojans routed Waterford in the Class M final.
During the fall of 2005, lacrosse players Ben Fine and Max During were among those who led Weston to a share of the state Class M soccer championship; the soccer final that season against East Catholic ended in a 1-1 draw.
"With 11 or 12 seniors on our team now and with some of the success that people have had in other sports, we're looking for veteran leadership to carry us through in this (lacrosse) tournament," Montelli said.
"We realize the games are going to be tougher as we move on and that we have to be ready from the start. You have to give Granby a lot of credit because they came down here and gave it their all and played a great first half, but when we come out at the beginning and play at 100 percent of our ability, we feel we can beat anybody."
Weston came into the state tournament following an eight-day layoff. The Trojans had hoped to win their first SWC playoff championship the previous week, but were derailed in the semifinals by New Milford, 10-9. New Milford (twice) and FCIAC semifinalist Brien McMahon are the only teams to have beaten Weston this season.
Weston cleared a major hurdle during its SWC season by beating perennial conference champ Barlow, though the Trojans may not have seen the last of Barlow. With the way the state Class S tournament is drawn, No. 1 Weston conceivably could face No. 7 Barlow in the state championship game on June 9.
No. 2 Somers, one of the best teams in the North-Central region of the state, plays host to Barlow in a quarterfinal game on Tuesday in the lower bracket, while Weston faces Avon in the opposite bracket.
Also on the Barlow side of the bracket is tournament dark horse St. Joseph, which as the No. 11 seed went on the road in the first round and crushed No. 6 Suffield.
Back on Weston's upper bracket side, the other team most likely to reach the tournament semifinals is SWC member New Fairfield, which plays host to Northwest Catholic on Tuesday. A Weston-New Fairfield semifinal game would be a rematch of the May 1 regular-season contest, one that Weston captured by 16-11.
Whitten, however, isn't concerned at the moment about who his ensuing opponents may be.
"We've said all along that it's all about us, how we handle pressure, how we rise to the occasion and handle ourselves, not who we're playing," the Weston coach said.
"I told our guys, everything you do in life is about decisions. You can decide you're going to come out and play better in the second half. You can decide that you're going to come out at the beginning of each game and play at 100 percent. That's all we have to concern ourselves with.how we play."
Jim Stout is the MaxPreps.com Media Manager for the Northeast Region. He may be reached at 203-563-2297 or at jstout@maxpreps.com.
