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MARIETTA - Once Pope's boys lacrosse team figured out how to attack the Wheeler defense Wednesday, the Greyhounds capitalized on virtually every opportunity that came their way.

Led by a school single-game record eight goals from junior Andrew Russell, the third-ranked Greyhounds defeated the Wildcats, 15-4, in an Area 8 game at Corky Kell Stadium.

Pope (8-1, 3-1) started slowly, taking a 3-0 lead at the end of the first quarter.

Buyoed by a swarming defense, which caused multiple turnovers throughout the game, the Greyhounds outscored Wheeler 6-2 in the second period to take a 9-2 lead into halftime.

"Our attack played very well (Wednesday)," Pope coach Chris Haon said. "Our midfielders were able to get the ball up the field in a hurry and we held our composure until we got some open looks.

"Our transition from defense to offense and our aggressiveness really set a tone for us."

Russell scored his eighth, and the team's final, goal with 5:18 left in the game off an assist from Scott Dockery.

Senior Eric Morris, who finished the contest with eight assists and one goal, helped on five of Russell's eight scores.

"I pride myself on having great field vision and being able to see what's in front of me and how the defense is set up," said Morris, who is the school's all-time career leader in assists.

"I like to sit behind the crease and act like a quarterback most of the time, delivering the ball where it's needed. A lot of the guys joke with me because I'd rather pass than score."

Five other Pope players each scored one goal, including Evan Thompson, Dockery, Keith Llado, Calvin Peters and Parker Frost. Dockery, Peters and Geoffrey Cohen each added an assist.

The Greyhounds led, 9-0, with 7:59 left in the second quarter before giving up two Wildcats' goals to end the period. Blake Taube assisted on Chris Lanquist's man-up goal with 7:14 on the clock following a Wheeler timeout.

The Pope offense sputtered a little after Morris went down with a knee injury with 6:23 left in the second quarter. Taube, who finished with a goal and two assists, scored the final marker before the intermission with 1:55 remaining, and Wheeler junior goalkeeper Quinn Ewen made three saves in the final minute to preserve the 9-2 score.

Once Morris came back after the break, the Greyhounds' offense started clicking again, outscoring the Wildcats, 6-2, in the second half and leading to a running clock with 2:32 remaining in the third period after Frost's goal made the score, 13-3.

Senior David Denning scored both of Wheeler's second-half goals, including one in each period.

Ewen, a third-year starter at goalkeeper for Wheeler (3-3, 1-2), faced 43 Greyhound shots and made 16 saves. Pope outshot Wheeler, 43-12, for the match.

"Pope is a very good and they made it difficult for us to stop them," said Wheeler assistant coach and offensive coordinator Tom McGee. "We can build off of our effort in the first quarter when we held Pope to three goals. There is still a lot we need to work on, but we're capable of challenging a lot of teams."

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