Despite a sluggish start to their first playoff game in two years, the Hillcrest Panthers managed to advance in the playoffs after beating Greenhill, 12-1.

As we wrote about earlier this week, LHHS juniors Trevor Atkins and Wilson Gillespie are standout players for the Panthers.

With just a 3-0 lead in the first quarter and a 5-1 lead at halftime, Hillcrest pulled away midway through the third quarter with a string of three straight goals extinguishing any Greenhill hopes of an upset.

Trevor Atkins registered a game-high five points on four goals as well as an assist to blaze past Greenhill in a 12-1 win. Junior Mark Hartman added four points on two goals and two assists and senior attack Kirby Ayres had three points on three goals in the first game of the Texas High School Lacrosse League North District II quarterfinal.

On the defensive end, led by junior All-State goalie Ward Weber, 'Crest kept Greenhill's offense at bay.

Long-poles Wilson Gillespie, Colson Castilla, and Michael Pitch, all underclassmen, kept Greenhill shots to a minimum. This meant that goalie Weber didn't see much action, giving him just four saves.

The win moves Hillcrest into the North District semifinals where they will face Plano West, ranked fifth in the state.

Faceoff will be Saturday May 1st at 3:00 p.m. at Franklin Field, located at Hillcrest High School.