Tigers Open Season with Win Over Upper St. Clair
By: Bob Orkwis
After having its first two contests cancelled by weather, North Allegheny proved the wait might have been worth it, as the Tigers defeated Upper St. Clair 11-8 at Newman Stadium to open the 2026 campaign.
Beckett Mayfield got things started for the Panthers, scoring just under 2 minutes into the game with a man-up goal.
The sophomore for Upper St. Clair would end the afternoon with six of the eight goals for Upper St. Clair, including their first five tallies.
North Allegheny netted the next three goals, with freshman Brandt Hoffman, Mason Brown and Alex Costa finding the net.
The Costa goal was the highlight of the spurt, as it was a rare goalie goal. The senior, who started the game in net for the Tigers, ran straight up the field with a clear and continued before firing a shot into the cage for his first career goal.
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Mayfield’s second goal made the score 3-2 Tigers after one quarter.
North Allegheny then added three more consecutive goals to build a 6-2 lead.
Brown took a feed from below the goal line from Evan Wade and netted his second of the game with a man-up goal. Charle Jones picked up his first goal off an assist from Colt Gibson before Wade connected for his first goal at 2:48 of the second quarter for a four-goal Tigers lead.
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Sandwiched in between two more Mayfield goals were Tigers tallies from sophomore Sawyer Catchen and senior Johnny Castillio off a turnover, to make the halftime score 8-4 North Allegheny.
Castillo took advantage of another giveaway for his second of the game, and when Wade netted his second tally at 3:31, the Tigers’ lead grew to 10-4.
Mayfield added another man-up goal before Brown completed his hat trick for North Allegheny.
That would be the last goal of the afternoon for the Tigers. Max Lane tallied late in the 3rd quarter for the Panthers before Reid Shields and Mayfield added the only fourth-quarter goals for USC.
Costa, the Trine recruit, made five first-half saves in addition to his goal. Sophomore Sam Walters made six stops in the second half for the victorious Tigers. Senior captain Ryan Palmer led North Allegheny with five ground balls in the win.
Upper St. Clair, who lost in overtime to Peters Township on Thursday, dropped to (0-2) on the season with the loss.
The initial Wright Automotive Player of the Game was awarded to Mason Brown. The junior had a hat trick for North Allegheny, while adding an assist, four ground balls and a pair of caused turnovers.
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Pine-Richland is next up on the docket for North Allegheny, as the Tigers will host the Rams on Tuesday night. That game will be broadcast on the North Allegheny Sports Network.
BOYS LACROSSE SUMMARY VS. UPPER ST. CLAIR, 3-21-26
| SCORE BY QUARTER | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | FINAL |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Upper St. Clair | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 8 |
| North Allegheny | 3 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 11 |
