GRANBY — Riley Goodhind set the tone early for the Granby boys lacrosse team Wednesday.

Goodhind, who finished with four goals and an assist, attacked the Smith Vocational defense all day en route to a 10-3 victory. Whether it was scoring, assisting or drawing the defense to find an open teammate, he was the focal point.

“Riley’s impressed me all year,” Granby head coach Kurtis LeDuc said. “He’s really picked up on seeing the field, seeing how defenses are gonna rotate and picking his spots. He's been huge for us offensively.”

Goodhind got his day started with a quick goal just a couple minutes into the first quarter and then three minutes later, added an assist on a Joey Severino tally to make it 2-0.

Then, after the Rams and Vikings traded goals, Goodhind netted another one with 48 seconds remaining in the first quarter – making it 4-1.

The Rams added two more goals in the second quarter, courtesy of Jordan Vieu-Reed and Kamdyn Lopez, and took a 6-1 lead into halftime.

Although Granby had ample opportunities on the offensive end, what allowed the hosts to jump out to an early lead was their defense. Tristan Moe led the defensive effort and showed relentless physicality whenever the Vikings were trying to attack.

“[Moe] is really good,” Smith Vocational head coach Joe Cortese said. “They put a lot of pressure on us which made our offense get in their own heads a little.”

Goodhind opened up the second half just as he did the first, scoring another goal less than three minutes into the third period. After a Conner McDonnell goal, Goodhind ended the third quarter with another goal, stretching the Rams’ lead to 9-1.

“Today was the first time we really saw our ball movement translate into open shots,” LeDuc said. “I think we could've put up as many as 20 [goals] today.”

After a few late goals by Smith Vocational, the Rams closed out the win. Wednesday marked three straight wins for Granby, as the Rams continue to show a drastic improvement from the previous year. But LeDuc thinks his squad can be even better than what has been shown.

“This year has provided a little bit more structure as far as the consistency of guys getting to play,” LeDuc said. “We’ve really only hit the tip of the iceberg as far as what these guys are capable of.”

]]>