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Boys lacrosse: Pastore's 7 goals help St. Viator advance to state championship game

St. Viator senior Nicky Pastore made an eye-catching goal, but then added a memorable celebration on Thursday night.

Pastore gave the Lions an early three-goal lead against Lake Forest in the second state lacrosse semifinal, but his one-handed roll-the-turf celebration sparked another wave of applause at Benedictine University.

The Lions certainly reveled in the program's first IHSA state semifinal appearance, relying on 3 goals and an assist from Pastore in the first 15 minutes to post a hard-fought 13-4 win over Lake Forest.

"I've seen hockey people do that, but it was just something I did," Pastore said of his early celebration.

In a battle of first-time state-championship game programs - and a rare absence of heavyweights New Trier or Loyola in the final game - St. Viator faces off against Wheaton Academy in Saturday's 3:30 p.m. title game at Hinsdale Central High School.

St. Viator's Cade Faulkner was all over the field, finishing with 3 goals and 3 assists, but Pastore led the way with 7 goals and 2 assists.

"We're all excited for Saturday and looking to play to our best ability," Pastore said. "I just tried to come out here and not play with any nerves and play with confidence and shoot my shots."

The Scouts (20-5) had their eight-game winning streak snapped, while missing an opportunity to play in their second straight title game after finishing in second place last season. The Scouts struggled finding quality shots against the Lions, despite entering the semifinal with 62 goals in their four playoff wins.

The Lions (23-1) sent a strong early message by jumping out to a 5-1 lead after the first quarter. Relying on their stingy defense and solid goal play, the Lions hung tight for a 6-3 edge by halftime. Pastore drilled a shot from 11 yards out at the 10:28 mark of the third quarter to pad the margin to 7-3. The Lions pulled away behind late third-quarter goals from Cade Faulkner and Pastore to lead 9-4.

Pastore tacked on another signature goal - his sixth at the time - with an over-the-shoulder shot from 5 yards away with 1.3 left in the third to push the lead to 10-4.

The Lions, who defeated defending state champion Loyola 9-7 in the Hoffman Estates supersectional, have allowed just 21 goals in their five playoff games. St. Viator goalie Jack Hartman finished with 6 saves in 48 minutes.

"We just played our scheme and made single passes and it paid off," Cade Faulkner said. "Our defense played lights-out, talk about lockdown. It was one of the best jobs of the season, just a great all-around game by everyone on the team."

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