Another heart-breaker for the Trojans this past Thursday.  In the beginning of the 1st quarter it seemed as though for every offensive opportunity we missed UCSB had one work out for them.  We went down 4 points in the 1st and it proved to be a deficit that we just couldn’t recover from.

It wasn’t as though we didn’t try.  We put on a hell of a run all the way up until the final seconds of the game.  In fact, if we could eliminate the first quarter, the Trojans would’ve been the ones with the victory.

Jeff Barton was a key reason for our turn-around after the first quarter.  Bartronics made some saves that were so difficult for my brain comprehend that my head hurt.  Jeff was doing some serious Circus Olay stuff firing up the defense and even us on attack.  We started dominating the ride game so heavily I thought the UCSB coach was going to have a hernia.

Our offense began producing but truly turned it on once we started looking for goals off the crease.  Though he went scoreless the past two games Avery Brovick really turned it on when he knew we needed him late in the game.   So with less than two minutes left in game when I spotted ‘Ravery’ for the star pass I didn’t hesistate.  And neither did he.  He fired a righty ripper that gave him a hat trick and put us down one with just about a minute left in the game.

A great defensive stop and a full field dime of a pass got us the ball back for us to put this one into OT.  Though we made a great effort, the W just wasn’t in the cards for us as the uphill battle finally proved to be too steep.

Though the playoffs are out of the picture, the SC Lax crew has a game tomorrow against University of San Diego we plan using as a little frustration therapy.  After we get that win, we have a game we’ve been pumped about all season: UCLA at home.

Look forward to post about a W against them, too.

The USC Trojans invite all of their Men’s Lacrosse alumni to come back to campus to spend the weekend with the team.  Come watch us take on the UCLA Bruins at home on Saturday, April 24, then strap up your old equipment and play against us on Sunday.  A family-friendly barbecue will take place after the game to give you a chance to reconnect with your classmates and to get to know the players on the team.  If you plan to join us, please contact us and let us know!

Our Wednesday game against Clairemont was one of those unfortunate games when the score did not match effort we put in.  The Trojan Offense was granted plenty of scoring opportunities, but Clairemont’s goalie had an outstanding game coupled with the fact that we hit more pipes than a frustrated plumber.  Once again, the Trojan Defensive played extremely aggressive throughout the game and made a couple huge stops during man-down efforts.  Though I’m not sure how, Clairemont did get a few shots off; however, Jeff Barton played pretty lights out.  He let in only 2 goals with 2:00 left in the game.

And then the whole team sat out for three goals because we felt bad for how badly we were crushing Clairemont on their home field.  Because the SC Lax team is not only a bunch of scholars, but we’re also an organization gentlemen.

Clairemont was a mild awakening for what we have in store for us when Chapman comes to town.  We have a steady week of work ahead of us.  Though the odds are stacked against us, come Thursday, the Trojans will be prepared to scrap, sweat, bleed, and fight on!

… just click on the player’s name:  http://www.usclacrosse.com/roster

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Los Angeles, California – The Men in Cardinal and Gold improved their record to 6-2 with a 7-5 win over conference rival Claremont College yesterday.  The Claremont Cougars were first to score in the game, with a quick shot early in the first quarter off a face-off.  That goal was soon matched by an unassisted solo by sophomore attackman Jordan Levitz (Chicago, Ill. / Adelai E. Stevenson) to tie the score at 1 at the end of the first quarter.  From there, excellent riding pressure from the Trojans led to another goal by Levitz and one by senior midfielder Matthew Williams (Chapel Hill, Nc. / Durham Academy) to end the half with a 3-1 Trojan lead.

The third quarter saw an onslaught of Trojan shots, with only 3 finding the back of the Cougars goal.  Contributing these goals were Williams, sophomore midfielder Ricky Giancola (Centennial, Co. / Cherry Creek), and midfielder Andrew Smulligan (Lowell, Mass. / Lowell High School).

The Cougars made a strong final push in the fourth quarter, getting an early goal with 17 minutes left and quickly dumping in 3 more with under 2 minutes to play.  However, it wouldn’t be enough as time ran out.  With an additional 4th quarter goal for the Trojans by Williams, the final tally was 7-5, promoting the Trojans to an overall record of 6-2 and an SLC conference record of 1-1.

The Trojan defense, led by sophomore goalie Jeff Barton (Englewood, Co. / Cherry Creek), put forth a herculean effort against a shifty Cougar offense.  Barton stopped 79% of the shots he faced, and had strong defensive assistance from senior long stick midfielder Jeff Gleiberman (San Diego, Ca. / Torrey Pines) who knocked down or intercepted three passes and had two ground balls.  Sophomore defenseman Kameron Burke (McMurray, Pa. / Peters Township), freshman defenseman Will Indvik (Bainbridge Island, Wa. / Bainbridge), and junior defenseman JJ Pontes (Coronado, Ca. / Coronado) managed to shut down the Cougar offense for much of the game and kill all four Trojan penalties.

USC faces #2 ranked Chapman at home next week, 4/8/2010 at 7pm PST in another SLC conference battle, which will have significant implications for the Trojans playoff bid.

For all your USC Lacrosse needs, please visit www.usclacrosse.com and follow us at www.twitter.com/uscmenslax.

It’s taken me three days to write this update quite simply because I couldn’t figure out where to begin.  The SC Lax team played a dominant game in every aspect on Friday. 

The Offense riddled Fullerton’s goalie putting in 14 goals.  We also played the best possession offense of the season.  Whenever we control the ball our offense is guaranteed to make great things happen.

The ‘D’ shut them down.  The only goals allowed were unsettled garbage goals or a rare man-up goal.  Other than that, the Defense was on track to hospitalize somebody with their aggressive play all game. 

 All three goalies made an appearance and each one proved their worth.  Carter even proved that no one can score on him better than he can.  He saved a ball and then continued to save it into the back of the net as he fell into the cage.  You gotta respect the commitment. 

I don’t know if they put something in the water or in that rice crispy treat I got from a fan before the game, but the team really brought it together.   Friday, no doubt, was the best team win we’ve had so far.  With the playoffs looming, I’m confident that we can carry this momentum into our game two days from now against Clairemont.

This week’s game against Claremont will now be held on Wednesday, March 31 at 7pm at Upland High School.

The game against Fullerton will still be at 5pm, but now will be held at Tustin Sports Park:
View  Map

Due to a scheduling conflict for the Cal State Fullerton home field, our away game against them this Friday will now be held at 5pm at Tustin High School.

The 2010 USC Lacrosse Boys’ Residential Position Camp is tentatively scheduled for August 5-8. The camp will offer high school boys’ lacrosse players a chance to learn from current USC coaching staff and players, as well as from guest speakers and coaches from select programs in the MCLA and NCAA.  Registration is planned to open by early April.

Details will be released on the team’s website, http://www.usclacrosse.com, as they are finalized.

[EDIT: Dates are final!  Please look here for more details: http://www.usclacrosse.com/camp/2010-camp-registration-now-open]