Strath Haven’s Mazur can forego the FOGO moniker

NETHER PROVIDENCE — When Christian Mazur calls himself a FOGO, it’s a gross misnomer.

The Strath Haven senior does plenty of the first part, dominating on faceoffs. But getting off the field? Not a chance.

So you have evenings like Tuesday night against Marple Newtown. Yes, Mazur went 14-for-20 at the X. But his dogged defensive work, the three goals and two assists, that’s what he added in en route to a 17-6 Panthers win.

“Being a faceoff guy, you have to be the grittiest guy on the field,” Mazur said. “It’s all ground balls. That’s what this game is. If you can control the ball, you control the game, control offense.”

Mazur’s role has always been as more than a faceoff guy, his talent in both roles obvious from his freshman year. But there’s a tradeoff for the Army signee. On a young Strath Haven team beset by injuries, particularly in midfield, his tenacity in the defensive half of the field is required. On offense, he’s arguably the team’s best dodger on the ball.

It’s such a broad skillset that Mazur recognized early on that he could do more than just win draws. And the last three years of his high school career have been about broadening that array of skills.

“Being able to play offense is like a reward for my hard work on the wall,” he said. “I love playing lacrosse, and it’s the reason that I can play three hours a day. So being able to play the entire game is great.”

The question of when and how to take a rest, then, often falls to Mazur on the field, smartly metering his efforts for a generally thin midfield corps that wants to prioritize possession. But when Mazur is ready to go, he’s off to the races.

It leads to moments like a sequence in the third quarter where Mazur was part of the build up to an Austin Conner goal, then won the draw and scored eight seconds later to make it a seven-goal game and check the momentum of two straight Marple goals. His ability to score on man-up or feed teammates like Tate Gorman, both in the fourth quarter, underscores his value when the game isn’t moving at top speed.

Much of the challenge with Mazur is knowing how and when to push and to pull back. That’s a conundrum for a team whose biggest weapon is a sophomore in Conner. He continued a stellar season with six goals, including a first-quarter hat trick, plus an assist.

“It’s very helpful having attackmen like Austin to give our three midfielders a break,” Mazur said. “He can handle it. We don’t have to be afraid of him dropping it or losing the ball. I have tons of gratitude because he’s able to help us get our breath.”

Haven exploited struggles by the Marple defense. The game could’ve been worse if not for 16 saves from Jack Welsh. But a six-goal concession in the third quarter and 11 in the second half shows the weariness of the Marple legs.

“I think the biggest thing was communication and groundballs,” midfielder Charlie Box said. “We weren’t communicating enough on defense and we weren’t being physical enough to get groundballs. … Welshie’s awesome. He’s our guy. I can’t imagine how many goals we would’ve given up without him.” Box was the principal threat for Marple, the Cornell commit scoring three times and setting up another despite an exhausting night of two-way effort. CJ Lane added a goal and two helpers.

Matt Faggioli and Gorman scored three goals each, Gorman’s coming all in the fourth quarter. Wade Mutz had two goals and two assists.

But that group took its lead from Mazur, at the X and beyond.

“Especially being a senior captain, everyone’s looking at you to be the best player on the field,” Mazur said. “They expect you to play, they expect you to be the best, they rely on you.”

Also in the Central League:

Garnet Valley 13, Haverford 1 >> Max Busenkell scored four times to go with an assist, and Ryan Nealon supplied two goals and two helpers for the Jags. Drew Keaveney made 10 saves in goal.

Springfield 12, Penncrest 4 >> Jack Clark and Matt Ellison both recorded hat tricks and combined for three assists, and Colin Hannigan had an assist to go with a 14-for-16 night at the X as the Cougars rolled.

Radnor 13, Ridley 2 >> Colin French and Damien Ramondo each tallied hat tricks, and Ryan Goldstein ran the shop with a goal and three helpers as Radnor clinched the outright Central League title with an 11-0 record.

Gavin Kingsborough had both goals for the Green Raiders.

In the Inter-Ac League:

Episcopal Academy 9, Penn Charter 6 >> Max Strid scored three times as the Churchmen survived a scare against the Quakers. Tristan Whitaker, Reilly Dugan and Billy Adams scored twice each.