Both Meridian Mustang lacrosse teams were at home on Monday night, with the boys hosting Fauquier County followed by the girls playing against Brentsville. It was the boys’ game that proved to be the more exciting contest, as they found themselves in a tight one with a Fauquier team that they beat 10-9 on a neutral field on May 1.

Fauquier scored the game’s first goal in the opening minute before Dean Zike answered immediately afterwards, and then another Fauquier tally was equaled by Davey Gaskins. The visitors scored the next two, though, going up 4-2 after a quarter, and that’s when Meridian rattled off six straight scores (including three from Danny Oppenheimer and two from Rex Crespin) spanning the second quarter and the beginning of the third. It was 5-4 at halftime in favor of the Mustangs and 8-4 before Fauquier stopped the bleeding, but the road team came roaring back in the closing minutes, cutting it to 9-8 late in the fourth before Crespin saved the day with his third goal of the game coming with just over a minute to go.

Fauquier got one back in the closing seconds, but it was too little and too late, and the game ended with the same 10-9 final score as last time. Emotions were running high both on the field and in the stands, and it’s safe to say the atmosphere was electric as the home team advanced to the Regional Finals. Oppenheimer led the way with four goals in addition to Crespin’s three, while Dean Zike scored twice.

The girls’ game had far less drama, as they faced a Brentsville team that they beat 24-1 back in late March. It took them a couple minutes to get on the board this time, but once Caroline Carmody found the back of the net, the floodgates were open as Meridian scored eight times over the course of the next three and a half minutes. They went up 14-0 late in the first half before Brentsville went on a miniature run with three straight of their own just before the break, but the momentum stopped there as the Mustangs cruised to a final score of 25-5. Lila Deering scored six of those 25 while Zoe Gale and Allie Campbell both had four, and Julie Capozzi (3), Tilly Gale, and Carmody (2) also tallied multiple times.

Both teams will now play for a regional title on Thursday, with the girls earning another home game while the boys will have to do it on the road. Neither team’s opponent has been confirmed yet.