The Aztec men’s lacrosse team (3-2) split two games on the road this weekend, beating UCLA on Friday 13-12 and losing to Georgia Tech 18-5 on Saturday.
vs. UCLA
The Aztec men’s lacrosse team played their first conference game of the season against UCLA. The Bruins went into half time leading 7-4 after a late run in the second quarter. Junior goalie Steven O’Sullivan credited the second half defensive success to the halftime adjustments.
“We knew we could play much better, they caught us slipping a few times leading to goals,” O’Sullivan said. “We just needed to refocus and come out with more energy and better communication which we did.”
In the second half the Aztecs came out with a fire lit underneath them. The offensive attack, led by junior attackmen Patrick Greene, tallied 4 goals and 3 assists in the second half. The defense shined in the second half for the Aztecs which seems to be the pattern early this season, allowing just 5 goals in the second half.
The game picked up intensity in the fourth quarter with big hits and aggressive play by both sides and the game came down to the final seconds. The defense was able to lock down UCLA and run out the clock on a 13-12 victory. When asked how the first conference win felt captain Patrick Greene said it’s a great start.
“It always feels good to win within the conference as these games are the ones we need to win,” Greene said. “Hopefully we can keep this energy up for the rest of the season and keep winning these big games.”
vs. Georgia Tech
Saturday was a tough day for the Aztecs as they headed to Mater Dei High School to take on the #8 team in the MCLA, Georgia Tech. Georgia Tech came into the game after beating the 4th ranked team Chapman 13-12 on Friday.
Tired legs seemed to plague the Aztecs, as they started off the game sloppy with unforced turnovers leading to easy goals for Georgia Tech. After one quarter Georgia Tech held a 7-0 lead and it did not get any better as Georgia Tech took a 15-1 lead into the half.
The Aztecs were able to salvage some pride in the second half as they held Georgia Tech to only 3 goals while adding in 4 of their own. Freshman goalie Graham Knapp had a very strong game as he replaced Steen O’Sullivan in the 2nd quarter. Knapp was able to make 12 saves in his first collegiate appearance. When asked about the tough loss junior Gage Webb says the team will move on from the defeat. “It was a tough loss, we know we are much better than what we showed. We are just going to regroup and fix what we did wrong and we will be good to go.”
The Aztecs resume game action on Saturday as they take on the Arizona Wildcats (2-2) at home with the game scheduled to start at 12pm.