Prep hex strikes again: BC High lacrosse falls to St. John's Prep in OT in Div. 1 final

BOURNE -- Looks like the law of averages has been repealed.
Or maybe it just feels that way for the BC High lacrosse team.
You would think that if you keep running into the same opponent in a huge playoff spot year after year that eventually it would stop being their time all the time and it would, in fact, become your time at some point.
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The odds would seem to favor a change in the power structure, but it hasn't happened yet. Matched up yet again with nemesis St. John's Prep in the Division 1 state championship game, BC High again came up agonizingly short on Saturday afternoon at Mass. Maritime Academy's Clean Harbor Stadium.
Top-seeded BC High staged a brilliant comeback, forcing overtime by scoring a pair of goals (by Murphy Belvin and star attackman Nick Emsing) in the final 69 seconds. But St. John's Prep senior midfielder Luke Kelly capped off the first possession of OT with a goal that gave Prep an 8-7 win and a fifth straight state crown.
"My oldest brother Michael was a senior when we won the first one," Kelly said. "It means everything to keep the tradition alive and try to finish what those guys started in 2021 and before that."
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Prep had beaten BC High in the Div. 1 final in 2021 (by an 11-7 score), 2022 (11-5) and 2023 (16-14) before switching things up a little by eliminating the Eagles in the semis last spring before topping Needham in the final. Prep also won both regular-season meetings with BC High this spring and last spring.
"It's always a dogfight with these guys," Kelly said. "They know what we're doing offensively, we know what they're doing offensively. It's just a battle of attrition, who's going to grind it out."
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Suffice to say, BC High has built up a deep reserve of motivation for next year, when the Catholic Conference foes collide again.
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"We all sign up for it by playing sports, right?" BC High coach Marcus Craigwell said of the Prep hex. "There's gotta be a winner and a loser. It's all about preparation. It should set the next year up in terms of what (the returning players) expect. It might be Prep again (in the final). It might be Prep the next 10 years. We just don't know. Unfortunately, we came up on the short end (again). But they shouldn't hang their heads."
Luke Kelly of St. John's Prep scored the winning goal in overtime as Prep defeated BC High, 8-7, in overtime in the MIAA Division 1 state championship on Saturday, June 14, 2025, at Mass Maritime Academy
BC High (19-4) came out flying, grabbing a 3-0 lead in the first four minutes as Emsing sandwiched a pair of goals around one by sophomore FOGO Jackson Ketchen. Ketchen's goal came straight off a faceoff win just 4 seconds after Emsing's opening tally.
Was No. 2 Prep (22-1) surprised by the early flurry?
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"Little bit," Kelly said. "They were getting some groundballs, winning some faceoffs. It's a state championship, two best teams in the state. They're going to score some goals. We gotta get it back."
Prep certainly did that, roaring back to score six straight goals to take a 6-3 lead into halftime. Cam McCarthy got Prep on the board midway through the first quarter, and the champs outscored BC High 5-0 in the second quarter on goals from Ryan McCarthy, Madden McGowan, Bo Minogue, Josh Haarmann and Mac Crawford.
BC High slowly turned the tide in the second half, outscoring Prep 4-1. Emsing completed his hat trick midway through the third quarter to halt Prep's scoring binge. Beckett Lee put Prep ahead 7-4, but Jacob Adams struck to get BC High within 7-5 heading into the fourth quarter.
"Hot start," Craigwell said. "We gave them a different look, and then they settled into it. We had to battle. We won the first (quarter), they won the second, we won the third and fourth."
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Belvin made it 7-6 with 1:09 left, and Emsing netted his fourth of the day with just 28 seconds left to tie it up.
"With 2 minutes left we could have bagged it in, down two," Craigwell said. "But we plugged away and stayed consistent. Couldn't have asked for a better effort."
BC High appeared to have all the momentum heading into the extra period, but they never touched the ball.
"We were just staying calm," Kelly said of Prep's mental approach to OT. "We've been working on relaxation for the past 45 days, I think. So just staying calm and keep playing (assuming) it's going to come. We've worked too hard to lose it. We knew we were going to win."
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That they did, as Kelly fired a bullet just over the right shoulder of BC High junior goalie TJ Emsing (Nick's brother), who had made a pair of saves just before Kelly's final statement.
Could he have written a better ending to his Prep career?
"No, I don't think so," Kelly said. "I started out as a water boy in the program seven years ago. I love this team. Coach (John) Pynchon has made me the man I am today. I love St. John's so much. To end it like this is magical."
This article originally appeared on The Patriot Ledger: BC High lacrosse rallies late but falls in OT in Div. 1 state final

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