There really is no way to sugarcoat it.  If there was any doubt lingering in any fan’s minds about the legitimacy of Jupiter as the #1 team in the state, put those thoughts aside.  From the first minute to the last Jupiter completely controlled this match-up. 3 Goals.  All unassisted. 21 turnovers versus 22 shots at goal.  Only 12 on goal.  Because the Jupiter defense kept taking the ball away, not because SA was sloppy in their ball-handling. A 3-minute un-releasable stick penalty to start the second period on Jupiter.  3 minutes later Jupiter had a short-handed goal and SA had none. Frankly, we could have wrapped up the game right there since it was a portend for the rest of the game. Even though SA’s Alex Newhouse dominated the face-off circle and SA goalie Connor Poetzinger played a pretty good game. Jupiter’s offense played as a unit, with 7 of the 11 goals coming off an assist.  Many of those assists were to an off-ball player cutting towards a wide-open soft spot in middle of the field.  30 shots total led to 11 goals.  Very efficient offense.  SA produced 3 goals on 22 shots; I can’t remember one back-door cut the entire game.  I’m sure I missed a few but it certainly didn’t stand out.     Occam’s Razor.  Simply defined it means all things being equal the simplest explanation is usually the most likely. Jupiter – Alexander going to Duke, Cox going to West Point, Sampson and Scheele going to Bryant.  4 D1 recruits off the top of my head.  SA – Bargas to Michigan.  That’s it.  Conclusion?  Not only did Jupiter play better team ball last night but they are also more talented.  For lacrosse fans of a certain vintage that statement is almost surreal.  But it is now true and helps to explain last night. Certainly something to remember going forward . . . Just two minutes into the game Jupiter opened the scoring with freshman Michael Dean (4G/1A) taking Ben White’s feed to make it 1-0.  White found Dean alone on the crease from in front and Dean bounced one in with 9:59 on the clock.  Jupiter stretched the lead to 2-0 at 2:06 as Kane Cochran finished off a solo effort, cutting through TWO different double teams before bouncing one in from 5 yards out on the right wing.  Without winning a face-off Jupiter controlled time of possession as the defense kept causing turnovers, limiting SA to 3 shots in the period.  And since all three were on goal Jupiter goalie Viper Scheele was also proving to be a tough last line of defense as he was on top of his game the entire time.  Scheele also contributed greatly to Jupiter’s clearing efforts as SA had trouble riding him. The stick penalty mentioned above started out the second period and was the most important three minutes of the game to me, as the only goal scored during it was at 10:59, as Dean scored his second, from Peter Cox.  Cox was killing the penalty by running around behind the net.  After a certain amount of time Cox beat his defender and from left goal-line extended found Dean cutting down the middle of defense.  Dean was able to finish and any SA momentum at the start of the period was extinguished. Just 8 seconds after the penalty was over Zach Crotty made it 4-0 unassisted, curling from behind the left side of the net before placing a right-handed shot low to the far side.  Then at 8:08 Sean Denes scored from the left wing, taking Crotty’s left goal-line extended feed and shooting low between Poetzinger’s legs and it was 5-0.  Cole Mulligan got one back for SA at 3:14 on SA’s only shot on goal of the period, making a left side face dodge to get to the crease and placing a high, far-side shot past Scheele to make it 5-1.  But Jupiter’s Tommy Pinkham regained that one for Jupiter at 1:41, again on a middle cut from up top, taking Crotty’s left wing feed and shooting lefty into the corner.     The second half started with SA looking for some sort of momentum and it looked like Poetzinger might have supplied some early, making a 1 on 1 crease save just 10 seconds in after a face-off breakaway.  And at 8:13 SA did cut the lead as Addison Lutes made one of the plays of the game.  After Scheele made a terrific kick save on Lutes cutting across the crease Lutes was able from the ground to scoop the ball and loft it past the prone Scheele to make it 6-2.  But again Jupiter responded, at 6:31, as Lars Coughlin fired a 10-yard bounce shot from the left side and the ball kicked up into the top corner, eluding Poetzinger.  SA responded at 5:01 with Brandt Guldin’s left wing alley dodge, beating Scheele high-to-high on the short side to make it 7-3. But that was as close as SA was going to get as Dean scored his third from Crotty at 1:50.  Crotty, from behind the left side of the net, found Dean all alone on the right side of the crease and Dean patiently placed it in for an 8-3 lead going into the fourth. The fourth started with Jupiter playing very patiently and looking to take off time during each offensive possession and the teams remained scoreless for the first half the period. But then Jupiter left no doubt as they scored three times in about two minutes to put the game away.  At 5:33 Dean took Jake Steiger’s feed from the right wing, as he cut down the middle again and scored his fourth.  Braylen Sampson, who played probably the best game I’ve seen him play, scored one minute later, finishing a give and go from Dean and bouncing one in from the right wing.  White then finished the barrage at 3:25 unassisted as he picked up a loose ball off a scramble and had an open net to fire into to finish the scoring.     8 players scored for Jupiter, 5 had assists.  With a makeshift attack as both Jesse Foertmeyer and Davis Yates remain sidelined. Just too good last night. Who is #1?  There’s no question right now.   Team Statistics Faceoffs:  11-5 SA Shots:  Jupiter 30 – SA 22 Shots on Goal”  Jupiter 18 – SA 12 Turnovers:  SA 21 – Jupiter 17 Penalties:  S 6 – Jupiter 3   Individual Statistics   Jupiter Michael Dean 4G/1A Zach Crotty  1G/3A Ben White  1G/1A Kane Cochran, Sean Denes, Tommy Pinkham, Lars Coughlin and Braylen Sampson 1G each Peter Cox and Jake Steiger  1A each   SA Cole Mulligan, Addison Lutes and Brandt Guldin 1G each   Thanks to Coaches Loftus and Dawson for talking to me both before and after the game. Jupiter returns to action Friday night, hosting Top 10 opponent Lake Mary while SA host Gulliver Prep, also on Friday