On October 10, we had 20 guys coming with us. Yesterday only 13 could make it. More than half of yesterday's team were underclassmen. Only one team captain, and three seniors total made the trip. We also lacked our starting varsity goalie.
Luckily the guys that did go stepped their games up. Back up goalie Hunter Couch, in particular, had a huge day. Facing 45 shots on the day, he only let in 16. Most of the shots taken and scored were in the final game when the team as a whole was simply exhausted. Couch stood firm and still managed a 63% save percentage in that game. Bravo to Sugar Rush.
Many new players made their Valley debut yesterday. Let me be the first to say that the spring season looks bright.
Now for a quick recap:Game 1 saw us against the Rampage. Lincoln narrowly lost to defending champion, Millard West, 6-4 in their first game. Apparently the home team was on their game yesterday. After they got ahead early, we came back to beat Lincoln 4-2.
Our second game was against a combined team featuring Westside and our heated rivals, River City. After allowing an early goal, Valley turned up the heat to win 11-4. This makes our fourth victory over the Black Knights in as many meetings.
Following a lunch break, we faced perennial powerhouse Creighton Prep in our third game. Prep's bench was twice as deep as ours and featured significant experience. After an early ejection of both a Bluejay and our team captain, Cam Bostwick, we dug in. Having gone down 3-0 by halftime, the Tigers dug in our heals and fought back to narrowly lose 3-2. Even without their most established leader on their field, our boys came together and persevered. This game exemplified a "quality loss."
Unfortunately our final game saw a Valley team with no energy left. The early morning drive combined with the lack of depth and dry weather depleted what little oomph remained. Despite high levels of fatigue, everyone came back and fought as hard as they could. All of our time-outs were used just to allow the guys to catch their breath. After fighting against the returning champs and their deep bench, we ended up with a 7-4 loss. Never in my life had I witnessed a team give their all and not give up when everything was against their favor. This game made me proud to be associated with the team.
I also want to share my thanks to the coach of Millard West. When one of our underclassmen got hurt late in the game, the coach showed a lot of class by calling a time-out. This is what lacrosse is all about. Thanks, coach.
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Valley will play next on Tuesday, November 10 at Valley Stadium. The scrimmage will start at 6:30 pm and is open to the public.***
The Box Lacrosse League begins this Thursday at 7:00 pm. Drake and ISU play in the first game. The Demons will host Valley in the second.
