On a sunny Saturday morning fans gathered at Gary Kehler Stadium to cheer on the Blue Devils. Westfield delivered just what the fans were looking for: a win. Now 3-0, No. 8 ranked Westfield is proving themselves as a dominant team in all of New Jersey lacrosse. The Blue Devils plowed past No.15 ranked Ridge in a 12-5 game.
In the first quarter, the Red Devils were responding to Westfield’s dominant offense. With just five minutes left in the first quarter, a scrappy play at the 30-yard line led to a Ridge breakaway to tie up the game at 2-2. But not for long as the Blue Devils responded quickly. In a series of quick passes, senior Luke Angelo finds senior Garrett Ferguson in front of the net, putting Westfield in the lead and propelling a 7-goal streak for the Blue Devils.
The Blue Devils’ offense is extremely hot right now. The versatility of their offense has been a major factor in their successes thus far. Players like senior quad-captain Colin Coyle, senior Billy Gerne, senior Luke Gerne, and Ferguson are all connecting tremendously on offense to produce for the Blue Devils. The matchup against Ridge was nothing short of that.
Having faced a similar defense against CBA on Wednesday, the Blue Devils knew exactly how to break through their zone defense, allowing them to find the back of the net with ease. Coyle said, “CBA prepared us a lot because they played a zone [defense]. We worked so well together today, we were able to move the ball around quickly and fast, giving us good shots.” Head coach William Wertheimer mimicked this saying, “ We knew they were going to run a zone [defense] so we used our zone offense and took the lead early. We started to slow down the ball after that and started taking great shots.” Coyle was a powerhouse for Westfield as he had 4 goals against the Red Devils. Additionally, each Gerne brother was able to put points on the board for the Blue Devils with two goals each.
With two seniors graduating from the defense last year, Westfield’s defense was a bit of a question mark. However, the Blue Devils’ defense has been nothing short of locked in. The Blue Devils did not let the Ridge offense stand out in any way. The Red Devils did not score a single goal for the entire second quarter and a large portion of the third. Wertheimer said, “We have a defensive coach who comes in and works with them and he sets up our defense really well, so today they knew exactly what to do.”
The Blue Devils are back in action Wednesday away at 4:30 pm where they will take on No. 3 ranked Summit. Westfield is looking to keep this hot streak alive and improve to 4-0. Billy Gerne said, “We have a lot of momentum right now and we need to carry that with us for Summit on Wednesday.”
