Boys Lacrosse thrashed Palma School 5-1 on Tuesday, allowing them to advance to the Central Coast Section Division II semifinals.

Paly held a consistent lead throughout the game, netting goals every quarter and defensively constraining the Palma team to score only a single point.

Junior and goalie Miles Joing said he attributes the success to the team’s strong performance on both sides of the field.

“Defense played amazing, (holding Palma) to one goal; offense played even better,” Joing said. “The offense was amazing. Great players all around.”

Junior and defenseman Ilai Ziv said the team’s mindset was a key part of the win.

“We had confidence in ourselves, and we knew that if we put our heads to it, we could win the game,” Ziv said.

Ziv said their defense strategy was refined before the game, and was effective in the end.

“The original game plan (for) defense didn’t turn out working too well, so we went back to our older defense,” Ziv said. 

Assistant Coach Brian Kocsy said the team’s strategy revolved around being aggressive.

“Playing hard; being aggressive,” Kocsy said. “We wanted to make sure we got our … sticks on their hands, (but) a big thing for us was to not overcommit to their players.”

Kocsy said prior games against Palma helped to shape their strategy.  

“We played them before, and it was a fairly close game,” Kocsy said. “We felt that if we could play our best, we could handle them.”

Joing said one part of Paly’s tactics was to let the Palma players shoot.

“Their players aren’t as skilled as ours,” Joing said. “On defense, we wanted to let them shoot. They were shooting some bad shots, so we just let them shoot.”

Looking forward to the team’s game on Thursday night against the number one seed Stevenson School, Joing said that with enough preparation, another win could be in the books.

“It’s going to be a tough game,” Joing said. “They’re the one seed, so we have to eat well, sleep well and get ready for that game. It’s a long drive, but I think the boys got it.”