Wednesday night’s CIAC Class L Tournament opening-round game didn’t have to end for Greenwich’s boys lacrosse team to be declared the winner.

Thunderstorms caused the eighth-seeded Cardinals’ postseason matchup against ninth-seeded Amity to be halted one minute into the fourth quarter and play was not resumed, since lightning remained in the area for quite some time.

Yet by the time the fourth quarter began, Greenwich held a commanding 15-2 lead, so both teams and the officials agreed that the game didn’t have to be completed and it’s on to the next round for the Cardinals.

Senior attack Bryce Metalios and senior midfielder Flynn Milledge, both captains, scored four goals apiece to power Greenwich to a 15-2 triumph in the first round of the Class L Tournament at Cardinal Stadium. The Cardinals advanced to Saturday’s Class L quarterfinals, where they will visit No. 1-seeded Darien. The quarterfinal-round matchup is scheduled to begin at 3 p.m. on Saturday, but the starting time may be moved up.

In Wednesday’s Class L opener, Greenwich seized control from the outset, using impressive ball movement and execution on offense, while playing lock-down defense.

“It’s the seniors last home game this season,” Milledge said. “We all just wanted to make it really special for them and we did. It was awesome. We had a pretty big student section and it was a pretty emotional night for all the seniors who have been playing together for about three or four years.”

Metalios opened the scoring, converting a shot 1:29 into the first quarter. Senior midfielder/captain Quinn Warwick won the ensuing faceoff and Milledge tallied, putting the Cards on top, 2-0, 21 seconds later. Metalios escaped Amity’s defense and scored again at the 7:44 mark, then Warwick took the next faceoff down the field himself and snapped a shot past Amity’s goalie, making it 4-0 10 seconds later.

“Today we said before the game we wanted to have fun but we also wanted to take care of business and I think we did that by starting the game the way we started a lot of games this year,” Metalios said.

Getting off to strong starts has been a common theme for the Cardinals this season, as they’ve had a knack for jumping out to early leads.

“You are always  a little worried if they are coming out flat, or looking forward to the next game, or if they are too emotional knowing that this is going to be our last home game,” Greenwich coach Bobby Lutz said of his squad’s mindset. “They didn’t let their emotions get the best of them. They came out and played like they have the whole season and they were dialed in and ready to produce on both sides of the ball.”

Milledge converted a shot from 15 yards out, then scored from approximately the same distance at the 9:10 mark of the second quarter, giving GHS a 7-0 advantage. Junior defensive midfielder Matthew Trimmer dodged and scored from close in for Greenwich’s eight goal with 8:17 to go in the second stanza.

Metalios added two more first-half goals and Milledge also entered the scoring column again for the Cards, who entered halftime with a 14-0 lead. Amity’s first goal came with 5:56 remaining in the third quarter, with senior midfielder Colby O’Connor scoring.

“We’re coming out in these games really hot,” Metalios said. “A lot of guys are stepping up both offensively and defensively.”

Freshman attack Mikey Brescia registered two goals and one assist, junior attack Brian Collins assisted on two goals, senior midfielder/captain James Pilc tallied one goal and one assist, Warwick had two goals and senior attack Wesley Zolin added a goal in the winning effort. Senior Charlie Zola made five saves for the win in goal.

“Everything was falling tonight – the shots were falling,” Milledge said.

So now Greenwich will play Darien for the third time in two weeks. Darien edged Greenwich, 9-8, in double overtime at Cardinal Stadium on May 17, then posted an 8-5 win over the Cardinals in the FCIAC Tournament semifinals at Brien McMahon on May 24.

“We love it, we obviously, want to get a win,” Milledge said. “It’s hard to beat a team three times in a row. Darien’s a really solid team, but I think we have something for them.”

“Playing Darien three times in two weeks is tough,” Lutz said. “We’ll have to do our best in getting the possessions and controlling the tempo.”