A fantastic display of determination was seen among the boys varsity lacrosse team in its most recent competition. They started extremely slow and not playing to the best of their abilities. Despite such misfortune, the team came together and realized what needed to be done; in the end, another victory was secured for the team this past Saturday, June 3, when they defeated Haslett high school in the state quarter-finals. 

“Our preparation for this game was not too different from other weeks; we just worked on the things we needed to improve all week in practice; we ran through certain scenarios, too,” said sophomore defensive midfielder Ty Ryan. “Obviously, the game is higher stakes than the others because the loser goes home, but you have to play it composed and not let the moment get too big.”

The game was looking easy and simple for the guys so far. Relaxing and not letting the nerves get to them would be a big focus for the team. But something was off when the boys came out of the locker room and began their pre-game routines; this energy became a significant obstacle for the gentlemen at the beginning of the game.

“From the start of warmups, it didn’t feel like the energy was all there, which translated to the game, especially in the first half, only being up by one goal,” Ty explained.

The first half was rough, and it became clear a change was needed. A loss would not be accepted, nor would a lazy win. The boys knew how terrific they usually played. Luckily enough, everyone had the same idea—especially the coaches. 

“We had an amazing halftime speech from our coaches; this helped us come out firing the entire second half,” said senior captain and goalie Crandall Quinn. 

They did indeed enter the second half with their feet on the gas. The boys were booming with energy; a victory would be theirs, and there was no doubt about it. They started putting all their effort forward towards garnering a win.  

“We turned up the energy more,” Ty said, “including the sidelines, ground ball effort, and on both the offensive and defensive sides. Although we turned it up at the end, we need to have the energy right out of the gate and get up on teams early rather than letting them hang around with us for a half.”

The boys grew their number on the scoreboard as the energy was cranked and the enthusiasm was in full swing. 

Senior captain and attackman Jonah McConnell held nothing back, securing a whopping six goals for the team. Magnus Salmon, a senior midfielder, filed in two more goals for the team. In the cage, Crandall had eleven saves; on the X, junior face-off specialist Luke Wedder won 11/16 face-offs. All the numbers produced a score of 8-4. 

As the boys reflected on their performance, they knew they could have done better; but they also could have done a lot worse. This game was interesting for them, but it showed their grit and determination. To reflect on it all, senior captain and attackman Graham Bennett talked about some small victories and some minor losses. 

“Our offense needs to be more explosive and consistent, that is for sure. We haven’t been scoring enough goals, but our defense has been very good the past few games, only allowing four goals,” Graham said. 

The small victories are something huge that the team should take hold of and focus on. Positivity and encouragement can help the boys give a better performance. Tagging along with what Graham said, coach Andy Shira had a few thoughts of his own. 

“I am proud of the way our senior leaders stepped up when we needed them to, knowing we as coaches weren’t pleased with our performance in the first half.”

The boys will continue to practice and work hard until their next game on Wednesday, June 7. They will face the Red Arrows from Lowell at the Husky Stadium, at 6:00 p.m. 

Much effort and work will be put into practice before the Rangers face the Red Arrows. The offense needs to step up its game, and the team needs to bring its winning energy more. But one specific aspect of the game needs to be worked on the most: consistency. Shira knows it needs to be improved.

“We need to play a full 48 minutes.”