UCSB Escapes With 12-11 Win Over 6th Ranked BYU
"I'm glad everyone was able to get excited to play again following the tough loss last night," said UCSB head coach Paul Ramsey after the game ended. "It's not an easy thing to do but we did it." Instead of coming out flat UCSB raced out to an 8-5 halftime lead and held on to get the 12-11 win against a rallying BYU team. The Gauchos won the final draw of the game and held onto the ball to preserve the win. UCSB will play top ranked and 1st seeded Santa Clara in the 5th place game on Saturday at 10:30am. The Broncos bested UCSB 12-11 on March 6th in a regular season game at UCSB and 12-6 on April 18th in the WWLL Championship game at UCLA. "We have a chance to beat the #1 ranked team in the country tomorrow," said Ramsey. "That doesn't happen very often so we're excited about it." Santa Clara was also upset in the quarterfinals here in a 12-9 loss to Colorado so they won't be the national champion and #1 ranked team but since there is no post-season poll and the final one of the season was released on April 19th the Broncos are top ranked. UCSB got their offense back on track in this contest against BYU and 8 different Gauchos scored a goal. Senior Sam Lutz (San Diego, CA) led all scorers with 1 goal and 6 assists. Each of Lutz's 6 assists were feeds to a different player, a rare occurrence in lacrosse. US Lacrosse Director of Communications Brian Logue has been around the game for more than 20 years and he said he's never heard of it happening. "Six assists that helped six different teammates score goals," exclaimed Ramsey after the game.. "I've never heard of that happening either."
Sophomore goalie Jeni Centner (Tustin, CA) was again brilliant with her play in front of the net for UCSB. Centner had 13 saves for 56.5% to get the win. Senior Brittany Barry (Basking Ridge, NJ) had a career day. The midfielder caused 5 BYU turnovers, snared 5 ground balls and grabbed 4 draw controls. UCSB improved to 15-4 overall and 14-4 in the WDIA. BYU dropped to 15-9. Santa Clara Play To Watch For on Saturday: The Broncos scored on a hidden ball play against UC Davis in their placement game today that matches them up with UCSB in the 5th place game. It's the second time this tournament that Santa Clara has used the play. It got their offense a wide open feed for a shot on goal in their 12-9 loss to Colorado in the quarterfinals. Buffalo goalie Shannon Shroeder (Prariie View, Illinois) stepped up and stopped the point blank shot. Against the Aggies the Broncos got a wide open feed again and this time the Santa Clara shooter finished. Both times the play has started with the ball behind the cage and the two attackers facing the endline with their back to the rest of the field and the ball away from sight of everyone. Both players come out cradling like they each have the ball but the attacker with the real ball is the one who feeds the cutter. Semifinal Action: WWLL counterpart Cal Poly SLO advanced to the WDIA Championship game with a 10-9 win over Colorado in the first semifinal of the night. Colorado State, 8-7 winners over UCSB in the quarterfinals, bested #2 seed Lindenwood 7-5 in the second semifinal. That puts the #6 and #11 seeds into the championship game. Lacrosse Magazine On-Line Article
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Scottsdale, AZ - Following an 8-7 upset loss at the hands of 9th ranked Colorado State in the quarterfinals yesterday the Gauchos beat 6th ranked BYU 12-11 today. It was a placement game that moved 4th ranked UCSB into the 5th place match-up tomorrow at the WDIA National Championship Tournament in Scottsdale. The 3rd seeded Gauchos used an 8-5 first half and some gutty second half play in the strong Arizona sun on a 102 degree day. It was the first daytime game of the tournament for both teams. The Cougars were 13-12 winners over CSU on April 17th in the RMWLL championship game so on paper it seemed like a great opportunity for a much improved BYU to upset the Gauchos.
The 6 assists moved Lutz into a tie for most assists in a game at the WDIA National Championship Tournament. Lindsay Brown of Colorado State had 6 assists versus unranked Minnesota-Duluth in 2006. Brown and Lutz now stand alone in this tournament record category. Lutz was already on the list tied with 7 other players who had 4 assists. Lutz got 4 against West Chester in 2009. Senior Maggie Aker (Oakland, CA) had 4 goals and junior Ashley Antoon-Algieri (San Ramon, CA) had 2 goals and 1 assist.Copyright 2024 - UCSB Womens Lacrosse | Website by LaxTeams.net