It’s not often that St. Anthony’s boys lacrosse has a chip on its shoulder, but the Friars sure had one Thursday in its league and state championship game against Chaminade.

You can take your pick as to why. The Friars had lost to the Flyers in April for the first time since May 2021. It fell in national rankings after suffering four collective losses on one of the toughest schedules imaginable. And Thursday at Hofstra’s Shuart Stadium, St. Anthony’s trailed by three at halftime after allowing 10 first-half goals.

“I think in the first half they were just beating us on the ground balls,” senior captain Gary Merrill said. “In the locker room, we were just talking about what we could do better and how we could work harder.”

It’s in those moments where a team learns exactly what it's made of. St. Anthony’s players seemed to already know the answer, and they made sure everyone knew that the No. 9 Friars remain unmatched in New York by scoring six consecutive goals out of halftime to march to a 16-12 win over No. 3 Chaminade in what Merrill described as “the best one” of St. Anthony’s six consecutive championship victories.

Senior Giovanni Massaro and junior Dylan Harrigan combined on St. Anthony’s first two goals out of halftime before Merrill scored the equalizer, all within the first six minutes of the third quarter to tie the game at 10. Massaro was named the game’s MVP for his three goals and two assists, and Harrigan finished with four goals and four assists.

“I went into this game thinking, ‘It’s your last one,’” Massaro said. “And I got it done, I just played my game.”

Junior FOGO Paul LoNigro added to the momentum with a goal right off a faceoff win to cap off the Friars’ six-goal run in the third quarter as the Friars led 13-11 entering the fourth quarter and never looked back. Senior defenseman Parker McDonald and junior long-stick midfielder Ethan Bramoff helped hold Chaminade (14-2) to just two second-half goals.

Chaminade’s Connor Kuttin scored four goals and Quinn Ball remained terrific at the faceoff X, winning over 70% of his attempts. But on a field featuring many Division I commits, Harrigan managed to stand out early and often. From his first goal late in the first quarter to the final score of the game against an empty net, the junior always seemed to be in the right place at the right time.

“It’s just awesome, seeing the boys get up [after the last goal],” Harrigan said. “It’s a dream come true to play this game.”

Coach Keith Wieczorek opted for goalie Dylan Rappaport in the second half, a decision that paid off as the junior impressed with six saves over the final 24 minutes. The depth and top-level talent is always an amazing feat of St. Anthony’s, and even amid an unusual season Massaro knows one truth remains just as true today as it did years ago.

“Everyone said that we had a down year,” Massaro said. “The Friars have never went down, and we’re still here.”