Coach Andy Hilgartner and captain Ben Firlie both said resiliency defines the McDonogh boys lacrosse team. That trait has been on display so far in the MIAA A Conference playoffs.

McDonogh needed to score twice in the final minute to force overtime and eventually beat Loyola Blakefield by a goal in Friday’s quarterfinals. The Eagles trailed throughout the first half of Tuesday’s semifinal and once again found a way to rally and win.

Firlie and senior attackman Luke Miller both totaled two goals and an assist as third-seeded McDonogh turned it up a notch in the second half and upset No. 2 Archbishop Spalding, 10-9, at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium.

Sophomore attackman Hunter Metz and junior midfielder Eli Schaller also scored two goals apiece, while junior attackman Brendan Millon contributed a goal and two assists for the Eagles, who outscored the Cavaliers 7-3 over the final 29 minutes of the game.

“The resilience of our team was awesome again. I credit our 12 seniors, who have done an unbelievable job,” Hilgartner said.

“Amazing resilience and we just kept our cool under pressure,” Firlie said.

McDonogh (14-3) will seek to make history as only the second school in MIAA A Conference history to capture three straight championships. McDonogh will meet top-seeded Boys’ Latin in Friday night’s championship game in Annapolis.

The Eagles handed their Lakers their only league loss during the regular season, winning 12-10 on April 23.

“It’s a resilient team. This season hasn’t been easy. An incredible amount of pressure is placed on these guys and just the way they handle it — their belief in themselves and their belief in their teammates — is amazing,” Hilgartner said. “Just so grateful to have an opportunity to play another game on Friday. I told the guys I’m just super excited to get back to practice tomorrow with them.”

Senior midfielder Connor Wilbur scored three goals and dished off two assists to lead Spalding (13-5), which closed the regular season with seven consecutive conference victories. Junior midfielder Gordon Bennett had a hat trick and an assist for the Cavaliers, who led 6-3 with 5:54 remaining in the first half.

Junior goalie Aidan Seibel made six of his nine saves in the second half to stymie Spalding, while senior defender Max Allen shut out standout sophomore attackman Brady Mollot, his team’s leading scorer with 25 goals and 37 assists this season.

Boys’ Latin 13, Gilman 9: That time of the season came again for Boys’ Latin, a defining one to determine whether it would continue or end.

Upstart Gilman had taken its first lead late in the third quarter of Tuesday’s Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association A Conference semifinal. Over the past two years, this playoff game had been a roadblock for the No. 1 Lakers.

Not this time.

Boys’ Latin reclaimed the lead by the end of the third quarter and dominated the fourth to secure a win over the No. 4 Greyhounds at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium.

After two straight heartbreaking losses to eventual champion McDonogh in the semifinals, Boys’ Latin left the field happy to continue its season.

The Lakers (14-2) will return to Annapolis on Friday to meet McDonogh at 7:30 p.m. Gilman, which surged into the semifinals with a dominant 12-3 quarterfinal win over Calvert Hall, ends its season with a 12-7 mark.

Boys’ Latin coach Brian Farrell was quick to praise his senior class for its poised work in the clutch moments. Goalie Will Ohnmacht had eight saves. Faceoff specialist Parker Hoffman, strong all game, was particularly clutch in the fourth quarter. Midfielder George Insley scored three second-half goals, including the one to give the Lakers the lead for good. Midfielder Mason Proutt caused late turnovers. Liam White provided leadership and scored three goals to complement the two-goal, four-assist performance by junior Matt Higgins.

“We’ve been relying on seniors all year long to step up and they really did,” said Farrell, who rattled off the specific players and their contributions. “You just rely on those guys and this is what happens in big-time situations.”

Hoffman won the first two faceoffs and White scored two goals to give the Lakers a quick lead, and they were able to stay one or two goals in front of Gilman deep into the third quarter. That’s when the Greyhounds made their run.

With Gilman down 8-6, Jay Rodgers cut the lead to one with 8:38 to play in the third before Mike Maloney tied the game with 5:38 to play. Then Rodgers gave the Greyhounds their first lead with 3:59 left.

Another tightly contested semifinal was in front of the Lakers, who grabbed it.

Higgins answered 43 seconds later and Insley took the the lead back before the start of the fourth quarter. With Hoffman hoding his own at the circle, the Lakers dominated possession in the fourth and got goals from Insley, Spencer Ford and White — all in the opening four minutes — to take hold of the game.

With the Greyhounds not qualifying for the playoffs the past two years, coach Tony Incontrera applauded his senior class for staying on course. Rodgers led the attack with two goals and one assist, while Wilkerson added two goals. Junior goalie Zach Parks was sensational with 12 stops.

— Glenn Graham

Baseball

Liberty 3, Pikesville 0: For the past two years, Liberty has taken its grit-and-grind, team-first culture and matched up against the top teams in Class 2A, winning a pair of regional titles.

This year, despite a new class and new region, it was the exact same result.

The Lions took their talents to 1A, matching up with last year’s regional champion Pikesville in a heavyweight bout for the 1A North Region II championship. The teams battled through sloppy conditions with good starting pitching, but it was the Lions coming away with the victory as they defeated the Panthers for the program’s third straight regional title.

“It never gets old,” Liberty coach Travis Inch said. “These boys worked hard and we accomplished something we set out to do on Day 1.”

Liberty (16-4) will play a state quarterfinal scheduled for Friday against an opponent to be determined once all eight 1A regional champions are reseeded.

Another thing that never gets old for Inch is watching a strong start from Rocco Dietz. The senior, who took the mound the day the Lions won the county title, was back at it again Tuesday, pitching six scoreless innings.

— Timothy Dashiell

Catonsville 7, Towson 2: Catonsville senior Tommy Bolster pitched five scoreless innings in relief and junior Logan Meiller drove in three runs to lead the Comets to a victory over Towson in the Class 3A North Region I championship game.

The regional crown was the first for the Comets (14-5) since 2013 when they lost in the state championship. Towson finished with a 15-3 mark. Catonsville will play a state quarterfinal Friday against an opponent to be determined.

Bolster, the starting center fielder, came on in relief to start the bottom of the third inning with the Comets trailing 2-0. Towson’s runs came in the first inning after a lead off walk to Michael Perry and back-to-back doubles by Asher Grotzsky and Aziz Bishop off starter Matt Roseboom.

It was only the second time in three seasons Bolster entered the game without any warmups. That didn’t matter as he allowed one hit to the outfield and two infield hits while walking two and striking out five.

— Craig J. Clary

Chesapeake-AA 4, Mt. Hebron 3: Often in playoff baseball, a team can take some time to settle in. In Tuesday afternoon’s Class 3A South Region I final, Chesapeake bucked that trend.

In wet, rainy conditions, the Cougars struck early with four first-inning runs. Dylan Adams and Keller Herzberger highlighted the rally with a pair of two-RBI singles. That early run support was enough as the Cougars held off multiple comeback attempts from top seed Mt. Hebron.

The Cougars (14-5) advance to the 3A state quarterfinals and await their opponent after the eight region winners are reseeded.

— Jacob Steinberg

Glenelg 5, Centennial 4: Glenelg is battle-tested. The Gladiators have time and time again showed their resilience with come-from-behind wins.

Tuesday evening’s Class 2A West Region II final was no different. Glenelg trailed by a run in the first and sixth innings, but like they have all season, the top-seeded Gladiators responded with their backs against the wall to prevail over No. 2 seed Centennial, 5-4, and earn their third straight region title.

Glenelg (16-3) advances to the 2A state quarterfinals and awaits its next matchup after the eight region winners are reseeded.

The program’s six seniors have spearheaded that resolve, and it showed again Tuesday night. After Centennial scored in the top of the first, Glenelg responded with three in the bottom half. Senior Logan Pusheck laced a two-out triple, followed by RBI hits from seniors Michael Tolle and Zach LaFountain.

After five innings from Nick Bilotto, Pusheck, who had pitched just 12 innings all season, entered in relief for the Gladiators. However, Tiffany didn’t hesitate in turning to the four-year varsity player. Centennial (13-5) loaded the bases with one out, once again putting Pusheck and the Gladiators’ backs against the wall.

The veteran delivered in the big moment. He struck out Charlie Wentker and Zach Kelley to get out of the jam and preserve the one-run lead. A fired up Pusheck took his hat off and emphatically pumped his fists on the way to the dugout.

— Jacob Steinberg

Perry Hall 4, Parkville 3

Hereford 19, New Town 0

Stephen Decatur 4, Severna Park 3

Baltimore Sun Media staff contributed to this article.