Glenelg boys lacrosse closes undefeated Howard County season with 16-4 win over Oakland Mills

Glenelg boys lacrosse has a simple motto which is written on the back of its shooting shirts in big white letters: “Be the best.”

Coach Josh Hatmaker first instituted that mantra when he took over the program 21 years ago and it’s been the consistent message ever since. He picked it up from former University of Maryland men’s lacrosse coach and Glenelg native Dick Edell, who passed away six years ago Thursday.

The Gladiators’ coaches hold themselves to a high standard and expect the same in return from their players. The definition differs for each player, but the crux of the message focuses on hard work and giving it your all each day.

It’s been the driving force behind the Gladiators’ undefeated run in Howard County this season. Glenelg capped off the program’s first county title since 2019 with a commanding 16-4 win over Oakland Mills in the regular-season finale Thursday.

For the program’s 13 seniors, capturing the Howard County title was a key goal entering this season. Senior Tim Iannarino recalls wearing his older brother’s county championship shirt and said it was a dream of his to capitalize on the moment and make it his own.

Thursday evening at Oakland Mills, the Gladiators capitalized on that moment.

“I don’t think any of our seniors are going to play lacrosse in college,” Iannarino said. “So, our mindset was, ‘This is it, this is our last ride.’ We just realized how much we love this sport and how much this sport has given us. The great relationships we’ve built, great coaches and teachers who we’ve met along the way. We just thank everything for this sport and treat everything like it’s our last moment on the field.”

Glenelg (10-3, 8-0 Howard County) took a 6-1 lead after the opening quarter behind unselfish well-balanced offense. Iannarino and junior Robert Jones spearheaded the early offense with Glenelg building on its lead the rest of the way. The Gladiators’ cohesion offensively was displayed throughout with eight different goal scorers in the win.

“We pride ourselves on it every game and practice,” Jones said of the unselfishness. “We came in today looking for assists and we pride ourselves on that a lot.”

While Thursday’s victory closed the regular season, the fruits of that success began long before that. The Gladiators set high expectations for themselves each year to win county, region and state championships.

It didn’t come without adversity as Glenelg lost three of its first five games to challenging noncounty foes: Severna Park, Huntingtown and South River. However, they quickly rebounded with eight straight wins. Four of those victories came in the last six days with the Gladiators facing a grueling stretch.

They defeated Howard on Friday, Catonsville on Monday and Westminster on Tuesday, before Thursday’s win over the Scorpions.

“I don’t think anybody on our team is surprised,” Hatmaker said. “Our coaching staff is not, we just had to put it together the last two years. This year, the kids really fought hard. When you look at the stretch of games we’ve had, it’s been pretty brutal. Every day they show up to work and improve. I think that’s the biggest thing is getting to see the fruits of their efforts.”

Glenelg now turn its attention to the postseason and its next challenge. As the presumptive top-seed in Class 2A West Region II, the Gladiators will host throughout the regional playoffs. Focused on rest and recuperation the next few days, Glenelg looks to maintain the same hard-working mindset which guided it to this point.

“They’re a pretty senior-led group and that’s going to be beneficial as an internal motivator,” Hatmaker said. “We’re brutally honest with them: ‘This is what’s out there and what you need to do. These are the things that you need to do to accomplish that.’ They’ve taken to that task to go to work and they’re a hard hat type group, so I’m really happy for them because we have some really awesome kids.”

Glenelg — 6 5 3 2 — 16

Oakland Mills — 1 0 2 1 — 4

Goals: G- Tim Iannarino 3, Nicholas Mirecki 3, Robert Jones 2, Collin Szczepanski 2, Trey Park 2, Paul Dipasquale 2, Chad Prosniewski, Chase Buscher; OM- Owen Anderson 2, Joe McConaghy, Xavier Vereen. Assists: G- Collin Szczepanski 2, Robert Jones 2, Paul Dipasquale, Conner Hammond; OM- Xavier Vereen, Joe McConaghy, Tyler Anderson. Saves: G- Jake Jones 4, Zach Coughlin 1; OM- Ayden Erbe 11, Makhi Whinfield 1.