FRANKLIN — As Trey Clayton and his teammates headed out to Pisini Field on Wednesday, there was a chill in the air. The Revolution were set to take on an undefeated juggernaut, yet they showed no fear as they chased their latest endeavor.
The junior paced a complete team effort with five goals, as Acton-Boxboro overcame an early two-goal deficit en route to making a statement with a 16-11 victory over Franklin.
The game was projected as one of the top public program matchups in the MIAA boys lacrosse landscape, and the Panthers came out hungry looking to protect their unblemished record. Dylan McEvoy sniped a pair of goals in the opening frame, as Franklin seized a 4-2 lead through one quarter.
However, Acton-Boxboro (10-2) refused to relent, and showed exactly why it is one of the state’s best once the second quarter started. Trey Clayton buried his first goal 32 seconds into the stanza, before his brother Tristan added the equalizer to make it 4-all with 10:48 left in the half.
The Revolution were only getting started.
“We knew our faceoff guy was very good, Mike Calvo,” said Acton-Boxboro coach Pat Ammendolia. “We were going to have the ball. We felt after that first barrage that we had some room to run by guys. We were able to do that, and we found the back of the net. We just kept grinding, kept playing our game, and it came to fruition.”
The siblings would combine to score five goals in the frame, as Acton-Boxboro netted eight unanswered tallies to seize a stunning 10-4 lead at the break.
“Coach just said: ‘Take the ball and go,’ ” said Trey Clayton. “They were pressing out heavily. All we had to do was push transition, and play our game.”
From there, the Revolution were able to take their time, and maintain their edge. Trey Clayton added two more goals in the third, giving A-B a 12-6 lead entering the fourth quarter.
“(We) had a huge win over Andover last Saturday night,” Clayton said. “This is one to keep the ball rolling. Got Weston (Thursday), and we’re just getting ready for the playoffs. Iron sharpens iron.”
Christian Maranian finished with a hat trick for Acton-Boxboro, while Tristan Clayton, Ethan Fennel and Jay Keenan added a pair of goals apiece.
McEvoy netted five goals to pace Franklin (9-1), while Zach Langevin registered a whopping seven assists for the Panthers.
“Definitely a lot to be proud of,” Ammendolia said. “A lot to learn. I thought (Franklin’s) offense really hurt us off-ball. They had a lot of good off-ball movement. Really kind of exposed us there, so we’ve got to tighten that up. It’s good to play top teams like this, and it gives you some things to work on to be better.”
![Franklin's Eddie O'Brien is knocked down by Acton-Boxboro's Jack Roche during boys lacrosse action Wednesday. (Staff Photo/Stuart Cahill/Boston Herald)](https://i0.wp.com/www.bostonherald.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/FRANKLINsc013.jpg?fit=620%2C9999px&ssl=1)