No. 3 Colorado State Surges Past No. 2 UC-Santa Barbara 11-3

Fort Collins, CO – In their first contest of the year against a higher ranked team, the #3 Colorado State Rams were focused and efficient in all phases of the game, turning a 5-0 halftime lead against the 2nd ranked UC-Santa Barbara Gauchos into a comfortable 11-3 victory on Thursday evening on campus.  CSU got five points from junior attackman Austin Fisher (Rock Canyon HS / Highlands Ranch, CO) and a career high 11 saves from sophomore Jack Regan (Sunset HS / Beaverton, OR) in the win.

After a nip and tuck first quarter that ended with the Rams up 1-0, CSU exploded in the second frame for four goals, including three within just over two minutes to stake out to a 5-0 lead after the first half.  Junior midfielder Dustin Grybinas (Kirkwood HS / Kirkwood, MO) led the charge for Colorado State, scoring consecutive goals in just over a minute’s time as the Rams began to click on all cylinders.

Even with the five-goal lead, the Rams were far from comfortable at the break, having surrendered a 5-1 halftime lead against Cal Poly just six days ago.  UCSB struck first in the third quarter to narrow the gap, but the Rams scored four of the game’s next five goals to put it out of reach heading into the final fifteen minutes.

The key third-quarter run was punctuated when sophomore attackman Sean Smith (Amherst HS / Amherst, NY) rifled one past UCSB goalie Andrew Noto and then senior midfielder Greyson Konkel (Regis Jesuit HS / Aurora, CO) buried a goal on man-up to give the Rams a 9-2 lead with just under :20 in the period.  UCSB’s Jamie Bridgman scored with :01 left on the clock in the quarter, but that was the last goal the CSU defense would surrender on the evening and the Rams salted away the fourth for a big victory in their final out of conference game of the season.

CSU’s Fisher led the game in scoring with his three goals and two assists while Konkel and Grybinas notched two goals apiece.  Smith ended the night with three points, adding two assists to his third-quarter tally and UCSB was led by Bridgman, who scored twice.  Again, the CSU defense, led by junior Hayden Porter’s (Heritage HS / Littleton, CO) five groundballs, was stifling and when UCSB did break through for shots, Regan was there to snuff them out.

Shooting totals were fairly even on the night with CSU holding a 33-29 advantage, but the Rams made hay on groundballs and riding – scooping up 34 gbs to UCSB’s 25 and turning the Gauchos over on six clearing attempts.  UCSB was held scoreless on their five man-up chances while CSU scored on one of their three opportunities.

UCSB split goalies with Conrad Carlson and Andrew Noto each playing a half and recording six saves apiece.  CSU’s Regan went the distance, piling up 11 saves to just three goals against.  Regan’s season save percentage now stands at 73% after another impressive performance.

The Rams (11-1 overall, 0-0 RMLC) are now in the home stretch of their season with three games remaining on the schedule, all against Rocky Mountain Lacrosse Conference opponents.  Next up for CSU is #4 Brigham Young, the team that knocked the Rams out of the MCLA tournament in 2011.  The game next Saturday night is CSU’s annual Hall of Fame Game that will feature four new members inducted into the CSULAA Hall of Fame at Shea Stadium in Highlands Ranch, CO.  It will also feature a high school game between Cherry Creek and Mountain Vista, two perennial Colorado lacrosse powers.

UCSB suffers their first defeat of the season and falls to 8-1 on the year.  They must lick their wounds quickly before facing a suddenly hot University of Colorado team on Saturday in Boulder, CO.

Tigers are 11-2 and ranked #11 nationally

Clemson, SC: Clemson Men’s Lacrosse resumed practice on Monday, March 26th after a much needed spring break. The Tigers are in the midst of a challenging 22 game spring schedule and overall have fared well, taking a 11-2 record into the final weeks of the season and find themselves ranked 11th nationally in the MCLA (Men’s Collegiate Lacrosse Association) Poll.

“We’ve had two season-ending goals for this season”, said head coach Buff Grubb, “One is to win our first SELC conference championship since 1990 (the Tigers lost in the championship game last year to Florida State), and the second is to qualify for the MCLA National Championships which will be played in our backyard in Greenville May 14 – 19th. I’m happy to say both of those goals are still very much in play.”

To date, Clemson has negotiated a schedule that featured 5 teams ranked in the MCLA Top 25 preseason poll as well as scrimmages with two NCAA programs (Limestone and High Point University). The Tigers’ losses have come at the hands of then #5 Boston College and then #11 University of Buffalo. Top 25 wins included a landmark 10-3 win over then #12 Florida State in Greenville in front of 500 fans at the Kroc Center Turf Field as well as victories over Central Florida and Colorado, the latter in Boulder, CO.

“We intentionally developed as strong a schedule as possible for 2012, feeling that we needed to be ‘battle-tested’ to be ready for the quality of the competition we will face at the end of the season, in the conference and hopefully the national championships,” said Grubb. “Overall, we’ve come through it okay. I’d love to have another shot at BC (an 11-5 loss) as we got them early on before we had developed the confidence in ourselves we needed; our other loss to Buffalo was a 1 goal game which obviously could have gone either direction. To win decisively over Florida State was a big victory for this program; they’ve been the guys everyone in the SELC has been chasing the past couple of years.”

Clemson marked another first for the program this year by traveling west to Boulder, Colorado at the start of spring break to take on the home-standing Buffaloes as well as New Hampshire and Nebraska. The Tigers swept the 3 game series, starting off with a 6-5 overtime win over Colorado followed by a 5-2 win over UNH and an 18-3 victory over the Cornhuskers.

“The success of that trip is a testament to the leadership of our team officers, President Andrew Paradise, Vice President Kyle Matusek, Treasurer Kyle Stinchcomb, and Secretary Ryan Conlon. One of our policies as a “club” team is to rely on our student leadership to manage this program and these guys did it right, from arranging the games to handling the travel logistics, from air/ground transport to lodging,” stated Grubb. “That’s a lot to ask of a bunch of college students, but we feel these are great life lessons to learn.”

“The way the team handled all of the Colorado trip’s challenges (3 am departure from Clemson to Atlanta, change in time zones, and even more critically, change in altitude, playing at more than a mile high against a home–standing Colorado team) speaks volumes about the effort and dedication of the student-athletes on this team. Our guys stayed focused on why they were in Boulder and delivered 3 wins that are critical to our season’s goals. “When an eastern MCLA team goes into the home field of a historic western power and grabs a win, it garners a lot of attention nationally. Only one team from east of the Mississippi has won the national championship In the 16 year history of the MCLA; that was Michigan which has now transitioned to a NCAA Division I program for 2012.”

The Tigers have several players prominent in the national rankings. Senior attackman Chris Buechele is 22nd nationally and leads the SELC in total points with 52 on the season, averaging 4.3 points per game. Sophomore goalie Alex Branton is #3 in the country with save percentage at 70.0%; however, he is actually second on the team to fellow sophomore Demetrius Murray who is saving the ball at 74.6% but hasn’t seen enough shots to qualify for the national rankings. Significant contributions have also been made by senior attackman co-captain Will Patch, who has contributed 33 points on 17 goals and 16 assists, and freshman attackman JP Brennan, who has scored 20 goals and added 3 assists. Senior co-captain Jon Kilbourn leads the midfield scoring with 19 points on 13 goals and 6 assists. Freshman middie Charlie Pontiakos has been a dominant figure at the face-off, gaining possession for the Tigers on 76% of his attempts, winning 161 of 210 face-offs this season.

Grubb adds, “We knew coming into this season we would be potent on offense with players like Patch, Buechele, Kilbourn, and Conlon returning, but the truly amazing story has been the development of our defensive unit. We had no starters returning at close defense and also graduated two goalies who made last year’s All-Conference team. Coach French has done a wonderful job developing a new defensive unit which has allowed double digit goals in only 2 games thus far, against BC and in our season opener vs NC State. Their achievements in stepping up in a big way are all the more impressive when you realize that we’ve lost 4 key defensive contributors to season-ending injuries. Sophomore transfer Matt Hogue from Riverside High School in Greenville has been a huge addition, and we’ve seen sophomores Harry Luttrell (also a Riverside alum), Kyle Stinchcomb, and Mike DiRocco (a converted attackman) all play extremely well. Probably our deepest team position consists of 4 goalkeepers, with sophomores Branton and Murray, junior Andrew Speer, and freshman Zach Upton all seeing time in the net and contributing significantly. Perhaps the most impressive aspect of our Colorado trip is that our defense allowed only 10 goals in 3 games.”

The going doesn’t get any easier for the Tigers as the season turns to April. Clemson hosts Missouri, the pre-season favorite in the Great Rivers Conference on Thursday night at 7 pm, followed by the annual grudge match against South Carolina in Columbia on Friday at 7 pm.

“Clemson/South Carolina lacrosse games have become classics. This is one of those match-ups where you throw the records out the window, they just don’t matter,” said Grubb. “Last season we were fortunate to win an 8-7 double overtime thriller at home, and we know that’s what they will be thinking about as well. We’re not expecting to be greeted with open arms at their place this year.”

Next week, Clemson will host #23 Georgia on Wednesday at 8 pm followed by #8 Virginia Tech on Saturday at 1 pm on the varsity football practice fields. “Georgia, who has always played us tough and was the only team to beat us in fall ball this year, is now ranked nationally,” states Grubb. “Virginia Tech/Clemson has evolved into a heated rivalry as well. We knocked them out of the play-offs last season in the semi-finals in Atlanta, and, as a result, we expect them to be fully armed when they arrive next week. VT’s been one of the dominant teams in the SELC for years, and the fact that we’ve had recent success against them only adds fuel to the fire.”

Clemson will conclude its regular season the weekend of April 14th – 15th with a road trip to play Alabama and Auburn. The SELC Championships will be contested the weekend of April 27th in Johns Creek, GA and if all stays on course, the Tigers hope to be competing for the MCLA National Championship at “home” in Greenville the 3rd week of May.

For more information on Clemson men’s lacrosse, visit the team website at www.laxteams.net/clemson/ or contact head coach Buff Grubb at bgrubb15@gmail.com or team President Andrew Paradise at aparadi@g.clemson.edu.

Florida State just released a promo video for their April 20th game against Florida. What do you think of it? It gets us all sorts of excited and we won’t even be at the game. FSU is currently #25 in the rankings at 9-4 on the season and Florida is sitting at 5-5.

It will be the last game of the regular season for both squads. The Gators and Seminoles will meet at Bill Harkin’s Field in Tallahassee, Florida under the lights for what should be a pretty epic showdown. Florida State holds a slight edge in the rivalry at 4-3.

We’ll start off with Tennessee.

’47 Brand Sweatshirts

Another view. A nice classic look for the Vols!

Looking sharp fellas! And now for Richmond.

’47 Brand sweatshirts and tees for the Spiders.

Even the coach is getting hooked up! We love the look of the ’47 Brand apparel and could definitely see ourselves sporting this sort of gear both on the field and around town. Nicely done all around.

Looking to see more of what ’47 Brand can do, check out their all their stuff at Nineteen47.com.

Queue the COWBELLS!!!

Then, we have the very same JON SELFRIDGE making an assortment of brillant saves against the University of Georgia, Florida State University and Virginia Tech.

-Scott MacPherson @COCKSLAX_REPORT

Fri. March 30 – Columbia, SC – Clemson @ South Carolina – Huge Division game, but its all about the SOUTH CAROLINA STATE CHAMPIONSHIP! Clemson (3-0) is going for a sweep of the division, and the Gamecocks (1-0) are looking to go 2-0 in division. In the last 6 head-to-head matchups, Clemson is 4-2 against South Carolina, with the last Gamecocks victory coming in 2007. Two of the last three games have been decided by 1 goal. The 2011 matchup was a double overtime “killer” of a game. Both teams are returning the core of their players for the 2011 game. As a rivalry goes CLEMSON and SOUTH CAROLINA is one of the top in the country.

Fri. March 30 – Lexington, KY – Richmond @ Kentucky – This is a division game and I’m sure Richmond can’t get back on the field fast enough after the loss to Virginia Tech. Kentucky is 1-0 in the division, Richmond is 0-1. That makes this game a “kinda” must win division game for the Spiders. This is all new territory for these teams as they haven’t played before. Does it matter that Kentucky is in the FINAL FOUR?!

Fri. March 30 – Atlanta, GA – Auburn @ Georgia Tech – Yet another division tilt, and both Auburn and Georgia Tech at 1-1 in division. The victor gets a clean shot at the remaining divisional SELC tourney spot. GT leads the series in the last 5 games 3-2 and last year’s game was a 4-3 victory over the Tigers.

Sat. March 31 – Athens, GA – Central Florida @ Georgia – Not a divisional game, but very interesting none the less. This is very much a game that I would love to see. It is a contrast in styles, at least in my mind. I categorize Central Florida as a “RUN and SHOOT” team, scoring a lot of goals. UCF can slow it down and play but it’s not what the Knights really want to do. Georgia, I see as a “Half Court” team; deliberate on offense and steady on defense, they don’t want to play the run game. This game could also be a preview of a 1^st round SELC Tourney South game.

-Scott MacPherson @COCKSLAX_REPORT

Fri. March 30 – Lynchburg, VA – Southern Virginia @ Liberty – It’s a  big division game. Liberty is 3-0 in division, and with a win they clinch a SELC Tourney spot and set up a divisional championship with ELON. Southern Virginia (0-1) can begin to get back into the division race with a victory.

Sat. March 31 – Savannah, GA – Florida Gulf Coast @ SCAD – SCAD (div1-1) gets another challenge from another divisional upstart, Florida Gulf Coast (div.1-0).  A SCAD loss almost puts them out of the SELC Tourney as they would need help to get into the tourney. It’s at home and FGCU is traveling all the way from Fort Meyers, FL, that is a long bus ride with 30+ of you best friends! Can Florida Gulf Coast make a statement like Palm Beach Atlantic did last week?

Sat. March 31 – Elon, NC  – Coastal Carolina @ ELON – Not a division game but it could be a preview to the SELC Tourney North Championship game. Coastal Carolina is 0-4 in the last 4 meetings with ELON, and none of them of the “close” variety. ELON has a chance to cement their new status as “TOP DOG” of the SELC. There could be an “@COCKSLAX_REPORT” sighting in Elon, NC. Look for the guy with GAMECOCKS gear logging around multiple cameras.

Sat. March 31 – Athens, TN – Emory @ Tennessee Wesleyan – Another division game, and Emory is 3-1 in the last 4 against TWC. But Emory is reeling from a disappointing season (div.0-1,overall 0-5) and are giving up a ton of goals, 93 in 5 games! With a win Tennessee Wesleyan can go 2-0 in the division. That would be a pretty sweet spot for TWC in a 3 game divisional schedule!

Sat. March 31 – Jacksonville, FL – Palm Beach Atlantic @ North Florida – Division game. The Sailfish (1-0) are “FLYING” after last weekend’s triumphs! But the grind to a division title continues, and it’s on the road again to North Florida (div.0-3). The Ospreys at 0-3 in the last 3 meetings with PBAU and has given up 118 goals in 8 games. The Sailfish dropped 21 goals on SCAD last week. Do the math.

Sun. April 1 – Statesboro, GA – Florida Gulf Coast @ Georgia Southern – Division game, FGCU 1-0 and Georgian Southern 1-0 in division. FGCU could be rebounding from a Saturday loss to SCAD and this would be a must win game for the FGCU, or it could be a SELC Tourney spot clinching game for the FGCU. With a win GSU could throw the division into dissarray and 2 wins just might get you a division tourney spot.

Sun.Apr.1 – Boone NC – ELON @ Appalachian State – ELON is 6-0 in the last 6 games with Appalachian State . Appalachian State is 0-2 in division and with a loss, you can put a fork in the Mountaineers, cause they would be “done out” of the division tourney spot race.

-Scott MacPherson @COCKSLAX_REPORT

March 28, 2012

Complete Release | PDF <> Tournament Web Site

SALT LAKE CITY – The Westminster College men’s lacrosse team plays the final three home games of the season this weekend as they are host to the 2012 Griffin Invitational. The event features four nationally ranked teams playing a true round-robin schedule over a three day span.

The action begins on Friday with No. 20 Northern Colorado facing No. 1 St. Thomas (Minn.) at 4:30 p.m. That game is followed with No. 3 Westminster taking on No. 10 Concordia (Calif.) at 7 p.m. Both games on Friday will be played at the Judge Memorial football stadium. Parking will not be allowed on Judge’s campus for the event with spectators asked to park on the street. Parking on the street will be allowed around the stadium during a window from 3:30 p.m. until 10 p.m. Entrance gates will be open on both the north and south ends of the stadium.

Saturday the action moves to Dumke Field with Northern Colorado playing Concordia at 1 p.m. and Westminster facing St. Thomas at 4 p.m. The tournament concludes on Sunday with a 9 a.m. game between St. Thomas and Concordia followed with Westminster playing Northern Colorado at noon. There will be a special presentation for President Michael Bassis prior to the Westminster game on Saturday. The Griffins will also celebrate Senior Day with a ceremony prior to the game on Sunday.

Griffin Notebook

Westminster heads into the Griffin Invitational with a 9-1 overall record and winner of five straight. They are coming off a 13-7 win over Montana State on Friday. The Griffins have a 4-0 record at Dumke Field and are 3-0 in neutral site games. They have also posted a perfect 3-0 record against teams ranked in the MCLA Top 25.

As a team, Westminster is averaging 14.8 goals per game while taking 44.7 shots per contest. They have outscored the opposition 148-67 over the season while holding the opposition to 24.6 shots per game. The Griffins have a 397-186 advantage in ground balls with a 79.2% success rate in clears. Westminster dominates the faceoff department with a 79.2% win percentage.

Gian Sexsmith is the team’s top scorer with 49 points. He leads the team in both goals and assists with 33 and 16 respectively. Matt Hearn has added 24 goals and nine assists for 33 points. Colin Madsen has also scored 30 points behind 19 goals and 11 assists.

Marshall Serzen has dominated the faceoff battles with a 79.4% win percentage. He also leads the team with 68 ground balls. Jeff Peters has collected 44 ground balls and Jamison Amonino has picked up 37. Chris Burckle has played the majority of minutes in the Griffin cage. Burckle has a 67.5% save percentage while allowing just 5.17 goals per game. Craig Patrick has made 16 saves with a 50% save percentage with Adam Marfice stopping 44% of the shots on goal he has faced.

Invitational Coverage

The games on Saturday and Sunday will be broadcast live on Griffins TV. Live Stats will also be available for every game of the tournament. For complete coverage of the Griffin Invitational, visit www.WestminsterGriffins.com/invite.

ABOUT WESTMINSTER COLLEGE

Westminster is a nationally recognized, comprehensive liberal arts college.  With a broad array of graduate and undergraduate programs, Westminster is distinguished by its unique environment for learning. Westminster prepares students for success through active and engaged learning, real world experiences and its vibrant campus community. Westminster’s unique location, adjacent to the Rocky Mountains and to the dynamic city of Salt Lake, further enriches the college experience. For more information, visitwww.westminstercollege.edu or follow WestminsterSLC or WestminsterPR on Twitter.

Check out more of the game pics here thanks to Ben Haslam.

Where would the PNCLL be without BHSVideoDad? He drops by this week with another great highlight reel from Oregon’s 10-5 victory over Washington. The Ducks are currently ranked 9th in MCLA D1 at 7-3 and will play Texas on April 7th in Eugene. The Huskies aren’t as fortunate sitting at 1-7 on the season; they will play Washington State next this Saturday, March 31st in Seattle.

The Washington Huskies lacrosse team host the Oregon Ducks in a PNCLL game, not a PAC-12 game, yet.  Washington gets out to an early 2-1 lead, but the Duck’s defense shuts them down in the 2^nd and 3^rd quarters and the Ducks go on to win 10-5.  Check out a great helicopter check at 3:30 in the video.

It was the second road game/win for the Ducks in 24 hours after taking down Simon Fraser in Barnaby Canada the previous afternoon.  With the Washington win, they are 5-2 record with games against Florida, BYU and Utah coming up in the next week.