“I think coming into the season they thought, ‘He’s a little guy. He’s only a freshman. He can’t be that big of a deal,” Pierce said. “I think that I’ve showed them what I can do and I think that has changed their minds a little bit about everything.”
Pierce helped lead the No. 2 Black Horses to a dominating 13-2 regular season (12-0 Wasaren) that included a stretch from April 9 to May 16 where Schuylerville went 12-1, outscoring opponents 177-53.
“Zach’s not the biggest kid, but he’s got no fear,” said first year Black Horses head coach Andrew Smith. “He goes into every situation wanting to compete and he gets frustrated if he fails to succeed, whether it’s a drill in practice or play on the field during the game. You can see he wants it. He takes it very seriously and he wants to be the best. You can see that in the way he carries himself.”
The transition to the varsity level may have seemed intimidating at first for Pierce, but by the time the regular season rolled around, a simple look at the box scores showed he wasn’t feeling out of sync.
Pierce had five points in each of the first two games and went on to have two games where he cashed in five goals apiece, including the league clinching May 9 win over Lansingburgh.
“I’ve always felt really confident with the ball in my stick, and being able to finish – I’ve always felt really good about that,” Pierce said.
As the lone freshman on the team, Pierce attributes a lot of his success to the comfort he feels playing with the older group. It’s that comfort that helped calm him down as he settled into being the fast-paced attackman who can both score and distribute the ball in a dynamic offense.
“In the beginning of the year I was a little skeptical about it, being the freshman on the team, but after a couple practices and our first scrimmage, I really felt like it was going to be a good year,” Pierce said. “And that’s when I realized that I was going to be really comfortable playing with these guys.”
Two of this year’s seniors are the No. 2 and No. 3 scorers on the team, Luke Pumiglia and Morgan Cornell. In his first year on varsity, Pierce said he has learned a lot just by playing alongside them. The big three have been the catalysts of what has become a potent offense that can score in a hurry.
“In certain scenarios, especially when you have a freshman who’s the leading scorer, you can imagine the seniors would be a little bitter,” said first year head coach Andrew Smith. “The nice thing is that the brotherhood and comradery on this team is just outstanding.”
That team chemistry has blossomed into sectional play, as the Black Horses took down Voorheesville, 15-5, Monday with Pierce, Cornel and Pumiglia scoring nine goals between them to advance to the Section II Class C semifinals.
And to think, three years ago, Pierce was still unsure if his future would be on the lacrosse field or the baseball diamond.
Although Pierce first started playing lacrosse in the fourth grade Saratoga youth league, he would usually split time between the two spring sports and even took a year off from lacrosse. But in the summer going into seventh grade, when he played Rogue Lacrosse with Saratoga Springs High School’s Josh Porcell, he could “just tell that lacrosse was something he could stick with and play.”
“At that point I just really loved the sport,” Pierce said. “And I still do. It was just amazing.”
Pierce said his family was also very instrumental in his realization to stick with lacrosse over baseball, pushing him to go to practices back when he used to split time between sports.
That commitment has now been put fully into lacrosse for the still two-sport athlete who plays basketball in the winter. In the spring, though, it’s all about his No. 1 sport – lacrosse.
“Every day he’s one of the first ones on the field,” Smith said. “Him and a senior, that’s how it goes. He’s here every day, never has any excuses for anything, has done everything that you could ask of him. He’s a great, great kid to have on a team and I’m very lucky to have him.”
Before practice on Tuesday, May 21, it was no different. Pierce, one of the first to the field after school, was ready to take yet another step with just one game left to advance to the Section II Class C finals this Saturday at UAlbany.
No. 2 Schuylerville did just that on Wednesday, edging out No. 3 Cambridge for the third time this season in a 15-4 victory. Pierce led Schuylerville with five goals and two assists.
“Every time I step on the field I know that I have to step up because I’m a freshman and what I’ve shown,” Pierce said. “Every time I step on it, it feels awesome. Everything about the game – so fast-paced, the ground balls, the goals, the fans, just everything is great.”
Schuylerville faces No. 1 Glens Falls, the one Class C team they suffered a loss to, 9-8, in non-league play back on May 13. The championship game will begin at 1 p.m. at the University at Albany.
