Glenelg Country tops Park School for its second straight C Conference lacrosse championship
by Derek Toney
Glenelg Country School got a bitter dose of reality a month ago. Thursday evening, the Dragons got sweet redemption.
Glenelg Country claimed the MIAA C Conference lacrosse title with a 7-5 decision over Park School at USA Lacrosse’s Tierney Field in Sparks. Seven players recorded a goal for the Dragons, including junior attack Calvin Abel who added a pair of assists.
The Howard County squad never trailed Thursday, capturing its second consecutive league crown. Glenelg Country ended a 20-year championship drought with a double-overtime win over Key School in last year’s final at Tierney Field.
The Dragons (11-3 overall) enjoyed another celebration, denying Park a perfect run in C play. The Bruins routed Glenelg Country, 13-6, on April 13.
“Everything we did from that point on was to prepare for this game,” said Dragons coach Jimmy Murphy. “The guys did a great job of paying attention, staying focused and following the game plan.”
“We weren’t ready for that,” said Glenelg Country senior face-off specialist and defensemen David Lee of the prior match with Park. “We were cruising off the undefeated season last year. We thought everything was going to be sweet.”
Lee helped the Dragons’ payback effort Thursday, winning four clean face-offs overall as Glenelg Country gained possession after six of seven face-offs in the first half. Lee captured a defensive groundball, sprinted about 30 yards and fired a shot into the goal, putting the Dragons up, 4-1, at halftime.
Parker Swaim’s extra-man tally and Ben Reid’s unassisted effort with 27.6 seconds left in the third pushed Glenelg Country’s advantage to 6-2. Down 7-3, Park climbed back into contention.
The Bruins got goals from Riley Shapiro (extra-man) and sophomore Archie Stewart to close to 7-5 with four minutes left in regulation. Park had an extra-man opportunity with two minutes remaining, but was unable to take advantage.
Stewart finished with a game-best three goals and Shapiro, a junior attack, added two second half scores. The Bruins, who moved from the B to C this spring, were poised to claim their first lacrosse title since 2005.
After averaging nearly 13 goals in regular season league play, Park had a season-low five goals Thursday.
“We were undefeated, win 10 straight and then losing in the championship is tough,” said Bruins coach Josh Lauren. “It was a bit of a chess match. They (Glenelg Country) won it last year and they came out pretty confident. They were a different team than the one we played a month ago.”
The Dragons’ returning starting nucleus - featuring Lee, Dean Jalali, Ben Reid, Connor Grimes, Thiago Jacobs, Nick Lombardo, Swaim and Abel - made a renewed commitment after Park snapped their 13-game league winning streak (dating back to last spring) last month.
Glenelg Country closed its 2026 campaign with eight straight victories.
“We knew we wanted to play smart and play vicious,” said Murphy. “To be here last year and win was awesome, to come back and do it again…that’s kind of cool.”