Boys lacrosse: Venard helps Wheaton Academy rally past St. Francis

Ian Venard simply refused to lose Tuesday.

Venard, a junior attackman for the Wheaton Academy boys lacrosse team, scored four times in the fourth quarter to send the Warriors' game against St. Francis into overtime. Then he buried the game-winner with 50 seconds left.

That's 5 of 7 total goals for Venard this night in a seesaw affair Wheaton Academy ended up winning 17-16.

"We know what we have in Ian, but he's not always called on to be the dodger for us," said Venard's coach, Geof Weisenborn, who saw his team improve to 9-4 with the nonconference win. "We have a lot of different guys we try to call the number for in different games, and at this point, we felt in the fourth quarter it was Ian's time."

Venard took advantage. With 1:27 to go and his team down 16-14, Venard turned and fired from the top right side, depositing the ball into the left corner of the net.

Forty-one seconds later, Venard sent the game into overtime with a left-side shot into the right side of the net.

St. Francis and Wheaton Academy traded near misses most of the overtime period before Venard got loose with 50 seconds left, taking a pass on the right side and firing a shot as he fell to his knees that pierced the back of the net.

Ballgame.

But Venard was quick to give credit to where credit was due. Sure he scored, but he had plenty of help.

"It wasn't all me," Venard said. "We worked as team collectively, hyping each other up and we just worked hard. My teammates (were) carrying me, and (it was) us rallying together and being good teammates and wanting it so bad."

He was quick to credit senior faceoff specialist Marc Whitaker, who essentially turned the game into a make-it, take-it proposition in the fourth quarter with his ability to win the ball.

"He was huge, probably the key component of that fourth quarter and the overtime," Venard said.

For his example Whitaker was just happy to help.

"I've been playing with Ian since I was in about seventh grade, and I knew if I got him the ball with the matchup he wanted, then he was going to score," Whitaker said. "It was just a matter of me winning the faceoff and getting it to Ian."

Lost in the finish was a big night from St. Francis senior attackman Zach Kinnas, who scored six times, including the goal that put the Spartans up 16-14 with 1:59 to go.

He also nearly scored the game-winner with 2:06 in overtime on a behind-the-back shot that just went wide left.

The Spartans, who scored six consecutive goals at the start of the third quarter to take a 13-8 lead, fell to 13-5 but sure wasn't for lack of effort.

"It was a great game," St. Francis coach Bob Grisanzio said. "It was a game of wild swings. We controlled the third quarter, they controlled the fourth quarter. We had some great opportunities in overtime. They buried theirs."