ANN ARBOR – Detroit Catholic Central’s offense knew what it was capable of, but just needed to show it.
After getting shut out in the first period of Saturday’s MHSAA Division 1 men’s lacrosse championship at the University of Michigan and trailing 6-3 at halftime, the Shamrocks needed a spark.
That spark came in the form of a goal from Lachlan Moffatt just 13 seconds into the second half, which started an 11-2 run for DCC en route to a 14-8 victory.
“Hartland was playing very well. We just weren’t capitalizing, which is really strange for us. I think when we got that first goal of the third quarter, that really changed the tone of everything,” Detroit Catholic Central coach Dave Wilson said.
Even after Moffatt’s goal, the Shamrocks (21-3) still didn’t take a lead until late in the third quarter. Senior midfielder Matthew Aleva would shoot a laser that found the back of the net with 4:14 left in the period, tying the game 7-7.
Minutes later, Aleva would receive a pass from Moffatt and find the net again to give the Shamrocks their first lead, one they would not relinquish.
“They were big and I knew we needed to put the energy on our side,” Aleva said of his two goals. “We had to recover and come out in the second half with a game seven mentality. “We found that energy and made sure we played like we knew we could.”
The Shamrocks won all 14 faceoffs in the second half, allowing them to control possession for most of the final two periods and take a 32-8 shot lead over Hartland (19-4).
“The confrontations had a lot to do with that. At the end of the day, (Catholic Central) had a couple of strong guys that are really talented players,” Hartland coach Nick Levanti said. “You have to find other ways to win, whether it’s winning possessions, winning ground balls, tying, clearing better. In the end, I felt like (Catholic Central) came away hungrier to do those little things.”
It was Hartland who looked hungrier during the first half. The Eagles took a 3-0 lead after one quarter of play, thanks in large part to the play of rookie goaltender Nate Anderer. He made six saves in the first period and finished with 19 for the game.
“He is always focused and a great player,” Levanti said of Anderer. “That’s a performance you can expect him to give. He has that kind of ability in any game.”
Because Catholic Central didn’t find the net as often as usual, it relied less on its passes to score and worked on individual battles. Seven of the 11 second-half goals were unassisted.
“Each party acquires its own personality. We weren’t moving well without the ball, so the guys had to take it on their own and put the ball in the net, and they did,” Wilson said.
Luke Zajdel led Catholic Central in scoring with five goals, four of which came in the second half. Moffatt finished with three goals and two assists, while Francisco Williams and Aleva scored two goals each.
Hartland was led by Dylan Ayotte, who scored two goals. Easton Culver had a goal and two assists for the Eagles.
Saturday marked the first time the Division 1 final did not feature Brother Rice of Bloomfield Hills. The Warriors had appeared in every D1 final since the sport received MHSAA sponsorship in 2005.
The only two finals Brother Rice lost were against Catholic Central (2018) and Hartland (2022), respectively.
Catholic Central became the first program other than Rice to win multiple MHSAA Division 1 titles.
“It’s pure dedication trying to make it to this game every year,” Wilson said. “It requires a lot of commitment, skill, altruism and learning to be coachable. These guys did it. We felt from the beginning that these guys had the potential to do that.”
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PHOTOS (Above) Detroit Catholic Central celebrates its Division 1 championship on Saturday. (Center) A Hartland player carries the ball upfield as DCC’s Brody Wojcik defends. (Below) Shamrocks’ Matthew Aleva (30) makes a move as Hartland’s Mark Alarcon defends.
