A late, tie-breaking goal is always thrilling. What’s even better is the decisive tally coming just before time expires. Marcus Gerace did just that, scoring with only 1.8 seconds left to lift the Newtown High School boys’ lacrosse team to a dramatic 11-10 win at Bethel on May 8.

Cole Stockwell caused a turnover with about a half-minute left and got the ball to Luke Stewart in transition. Stewart set up Gerace for the win.

“It just felt so good. It was such a great pass from Luke Stewart and it was so fun to celebrate with my teammates in such a close game. I’ve never felt like that before — it was surreal,” Gerace said.

It was Gerace’s fourth net-finder of the game and he was one of a trio of Nighthawks to register four points; Owen Hannah had a hat-trick plus an assist and Marty Dunn had a goal and three assists. Nick Stockwell scored three times, Charlie Massett had a goal and an assist, and Nate Pickard and Stewart each had one assist in the win.

Goaltender Andrew Faircloth made six saves. Graham Spencer had ten ground ball scoops, Cole Stockwell had seven ground balls, and Charlie Dunn had three ground balls. Nick Stockwell, Gerace, Brady Brosius, Stewart, and C.J. Manfredonia all had two grounders. Led by the efforts of Spencer, the Hawks got possession of the draw 15 times to Bethel’s nine faceoff wins. It was a back and forth game.

The Nighthawks have had some other nail-biting wins this spring, edging Masuk of Monroe 8-7 and Weston 11-9 in back-to-back mid-April games.

“We talk all the time about staying focused for a full four quarters and we challenge our players to make plays that come their way. Great players make great plays and I’m so proud of how our players battled through adversity, stayed the course, and executed when it mattered most,” Newtown Coach Tony Fitti said. “Our bench was electric and that was a full team win — everyone did their job.”

The Nighthawks improved to 10-4 overall (7-3 in conference play) after beating New Milford 11-5 on Thursday. NHS will visit Pomperaug of Southbury Saturday, May 17, at 5 pm, and then it is on to the South-West Conference Tournament with the quarterfinals taking place Monday, May 19 (seedings and matchups to be determined). The Nighthawks have earned a quarterfinal home game which is schedule for 7 pm.

Sports Editor Andy Hutchison can be reached at andyh@thebee.com.