SPRINGFIELD — It took four overtimes, countless defensive stands, and a single, perfect connection to decide it all.
With just seven seconds left in the fourth overtime, Collin Meunier delivered the goal of his life, taking a pass from Matt Noonan and firing it past East Longmeadow’s goalkeeper to lift No. 1 Minnechaug to a heart-pounding 9-8 win over No. 3 East Longmeadow in the Western Massachusetts Class A final Tuesday at Springfield Central High School.
“It’s something every kid dreams of, scoring the game winning goal, especially to change the game like that, so, it’s amazing,” Meunier said.
It was a victory that secured the Falcons’ second straight regional title — and one they’ll never forget.
“A game like that, four OTs, it’s easy to go down, get hurt and run out of gas,” Meunier said. “We did not run out of gas once. We kept going all game.”
East Longmeadow’s Jake Robidoux (2 goals), who scored the double-overtime winner in the semifinals, came in clutch again with timely goals, while Braden McCarthy added two goals and three assists. Marco Santos and Zach Sares also chipped in for the Spartans, who were playing in their first Class A title game after moving up from Class B this year.
“I couldn’t have been more proud of how hard they worked,” East Longmeadow coach Dan Reid said. “You’re talking four overtimes; there’s guys out there [that played] somewhere around 60 minutes plus, playing hard. Couldn’t have been any prouder than that. I just wish we could have found the back of the net.”
Minnechaug was led by Matt Noonan, who scored twice and assisted on the game-winner, and Tommy O’Toole, who delivered two crucial goals in tight moments. The Falcons have now won back-to-back Western Mass. titles for the first time since 2012 and will aim to extend their postseason run when the state tournament brackets drop Wednesday at 2 p.m.
East Longmeadow came out strong, grabbing a 2-0 lead behind early goals from Santos and Daniel Fisk. But Minnechaug quickly settled in, responding with four unanswered goals to close the first quarter.
Sophomore Jake Hisgen sparked the rally with two straight scores, while Noonan and Matt Beaudin capped the run—Beaudin’s goal coming with no time left on the clock to give the Falcons a 4-2 lead after one.
The second quarter saw a dramatic slowdown in scoring. McCarthy cut the deficit to one with 8:33 left in the half, but O’Toole answered less than a minute later.
Both defenses tightened up the rest of the way, with strong play in net—particularly from Spartan goalie Mike Picard—keeping the score locked at 5-3 heading into halftime.
East Longmeadow clawed back in the third and fourth, tying the game multiple times and briefly taking the lead with 1:17 left in regulation on a goal by Santos, sending their fans into a frenzy.
“It was awesome, but we ended up falling short,” Santos said. “But it was still one of the best moments of my life.”
O’Toole netted the game-tying goal with four seconds left in regulation, stunning the Spartans and sending the game into overtime tied 8-8.
What followed was nearly 20 minutes of high-stakes, sudden-death lacrosse.
Both teams had chances. Both goalies — Minnechaug’s Zach Kozub and East Longmeadow’s Mike Picard — came up with clutch saves. And the defensive units on each side showed championship-caliber determination until the final moments before Meunier’s game-winning goal.
Minnechaug (17-2), ranked No. 13 in Division II, now heads into the MIAA state tournament with much-needed momentum.
East Longmeadow (13-4), ranked No. 9 in Division III, will enter its bracket battle tested.
