Boston Lax All-American game showcases MIAA and ISL’s best in OT thriller

WESTWOOD — As Team Boston defenseman Louie Marobella charged into the offensive zone during overtime of the BostonLax All-American Game, he looked up to see a familiar face standing between the pipes.

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In net for Team Scally was Will Butler, a Yale-bound senior who was a longtime teammate of Marobella’s at Belmont Hill.

“I just knew I had to score it on him,” said Marobella.

Marobella buried a long-range shot over Butler’s right shoulder 80 seconds into overtime, lifting Team Boston to a 13-12 comeback victory Wednesday at Xaverian.

The annual showcase, now in its 12th year, featured many of the state’s premier players from the MIAA and ISL.

All proceeds went towards The Ryan Kilian Foundation, named in honor of Kilian, a longtime BostonLax contributor who passed away in 2021 at age 43.

“It was just an awesome feeling and an awesome game,” said Marobella, who will play next year at Johns Hopkins. “I love Will. I’ve been playing with him for so long, friends since middle school. So it was great to share that moment with him.”

The event previously pitted MIAA players against ISL players, but adopted a new format this year with two mixed rosters.

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Team Scally controlled possession for the majority of the first frame, and opened a 4-0 advantage following goals from Tripp Schuhwerk (Governor’s) and David Hahm (St. Sebastian’s) scored 30 seconds apart.

Leo Kavey (Tabor) sparked Team Boston with an impressive solo effort in the final seconds of the first quarter, and early second-quarter goals from Brady Malo (Lincoln-Sudbury) and Kavey quickly erased much of the deficit.

“After we came back from being down four in the first, we kind of realized we can win this, so why not try our best,” said Max Zichittella, a Longmeadow midfielder who played for Team Boston. “We were like, ‘let’s get competitive.’ ”

The game’s intensity ratcheted up in the closing minutes of regulation, as Team Boston trailed, 12-10, and mounted one final push.

With 2:55 remaining, Kavey outmuscled a defender in traffic and sniped his third goal of the game to bring the deficit to one. Zichittella finished off the late comeback by scoring the tying goal with 1:18 to play, which also secured a hat trick.

“It felt good,” said Zichittella. “My last time wearing the Longmeadow jersey, after all the memories and everything that we’ve done. So it’s a great way to end it.”

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