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SCOTIA — The Amsterdam/Broadalbin-Perth boys’ lacrosse team lost nearly as many seniors to graduation last June as it has field players this season.
That didn’t serve as an excuse or stop the Rams from putting up a spirited battle in a 9-3 Foothills Council and season-opening loss to Scotia-Glenville on Tuesday.
Amsterdam dressed 16 players Tuesday, including two goalies, and youth was on display.
“We lost 13 seniors from last year,” Amsterdam/Broadalbin-Perth coach JIm Natole said, “which was a majority of our team. We have a lot of underclassmen. My defense is 11th- and 10th-graders, my attack is two 10th-graders and a freshman, so we are growing, and I’m really proud of what everyone was able to show, including my seniors as leaders out there.”
The captains for this year’s team are junior defenseman Chris Tilley, senior midfielder/attackman Matt Miller and senior goalie Cody Hamm.
In the first quarter, Amsterdam played well enough, but when the inexperienced Rams went against Scotia-Glenville senior attackman Dylan Bzdell, the latter got the better of things. Bzdell scored three times to give the Tartans a 3-0 lead after one quarter.
After Nick Lemp made it 4-0, Amsterdam responded with two goals three minutes apart late in the second quarter. The first was a bounce shot from Josh Motyka and the second was a rebound from Santino Carbone. The Rams only trailed 4-2 at halftime.
“We played a great second quarter. These are learning experiences for guys who have not played a varsity game. So to get them out there and shake off the jitters, not just for the first game of the season, but first varsity game of their lives, I’m really proud of them,” said Natole, who noted Amsterdam didn’t have any preseason scrimmages.
Amsterdam closed to within two once more, at 5-3, on Motyka’s second goal at 5:03 of the third quarter, but the Tartans closed the game on a 4-0 run.
Both goalies played strong games, with Scotia-Glenville’s Bryce Layton making 12 saves, while Hamm stopping seven shots.
“All of the seniors contributed and played leadership roles and did what they needed to do for us, including [Hamm], who made some saves that were incredibly impressive,” Natole said.
Bzdell finished with six goals for the Tartans. Nick Lemp added a goal and two assists.
Though Natole didn’t say what specifically, he mentioned that the team had been dealing with issues the last few days, but was proud of how they rallied around each other and picked each other up.
“We’ve had some guys that never played before, so they’re coming out and doing their thing too, so I’m psyched for what we have,” Natole said. “I hope we can put more things together this season.”
Amsterdam/B-P 0 2 1 0 – 3
Scotia-Glenville 3 1 2 3 – 9
Amsterdam/B-P scoring: Motyka 2-0, Carbone 1-0. Scotia-Glenville scoring: Bzdell 6-0, Lemp 1-2, Stark 1-0, Coons 1-0, L.Layton 0-1. Goalies: Amsterdam/B-P, Hamm, 7 saves. Scotia-Glenville, B.Layton, 12 saves.
