If you are a fan of nail biters, Columbus Catholic’s win over Gulliver Prep, 19-15, was the place to be. These District 31 rivals are intimately familiar with one another given that most of the two teams’ players are teammates once club lacrosse begins. Their coaches join forces to lead the club team. That familiarity led to predictability of tendencies which, you guessed it, led to a see saw game of lead changes and ties all the way into the fourth quarter. The first three quarters could have been referred to as the Michael Bulnes and Pierce Bailey show as they spearheaded their respective team’s scoring. Bulnes, Columbus Catholic’s leading scorer on the season, notched five goals and an assist during the first three quarters. Not to be outdone, Bailey paced Gulliver with eight goals, most of which came in the first half.

Coming off a confidence inspiring close 5-3 loss to Barron Collier, then ranked in the top 10 of the Florida Lacrosse News coaches’ Poll and tied at 10 at the half, Gulliver thought they may finally have found the recipe to beat the Explorers. The Raiders’ goalie, Lucas Altman, was playing well behind an active defense and the speedy Bailey was beating defenders with enough ease to make Explorers’ fans uneasy. That’s when Coach Delang and his Explorers’ coaching staff dug into their bag of defensive tricks and came up with a plan to shut down Bailey, who was held scoreless in the fourth quarter. D Pole Alec Cancio, one of the team’s fastest defenders, shadowed Bailey with help from Senior defender Brett Jacobs and Senior LSM Matt Larrea. Senior goalie Jeffrey Eskra held the Raiders to one fourth quarter goal and Columbus Catholic’s superior depth also played a huge role. and dominate faceoff wins from Jimmy and Mike Perry led to many extra possessions  for Columbus. As the fourth quarter evolved, several Gulliver players received medical attention after cramping up. With the Explorers holding onto a 16-15 lead midway into the fourth, Columbus Ripped off three consecutive goals

scored by Alec Cancio and Senior middies Cody Brais and Nicky Quintairos, the last on an a beautiful feed across the goal mouth from Senior Danny Rancano. Quintairos’ goal with almost four minutes remaining, his fourth of the game, seemed to break Gulliver’s resolve and improved the Explorers’ record to 6-1 on the season. Both teams return to action Friday as Columbus will play Belen Jesuit while Gulliver will host St. Andrews. COL Bulnes (5G/1A); Quintairos (4G); Carreras (3G/1A); S. Cancio (1G/1A); J. Perry (1G/1A); Romagosa (1G); Brais (1G); Rancano (1g); A. Cancio (1G). Goalies Eskra (5Ga/3Sv); Nickas (10GA/5Sv). GUL Bailey (8G); Rousseau (3G/1A); Kargonski (2G); Hasson(1G); Gautier (1G/1A); Walker (1A). Goalie Altman )19GA/14sv)