Shootout Re-Cap: Men’s Varsity
KENNEWICK, WA – The Missoula Elite Lacrosse Men’s Varsity team travelled to Kennewick, WA, over the weekend to participate in the 2010 Three Rivers Shootout. The event featured many of the area teams and playing in the tournament was a significant moment in the growth of this program. After a long drive over to Washington, the boys got pumped up early and brought a lot of emotion to their first game. Midfielders Coty Becker (JR, Valley Christian) and Matt Gosselin (SR, Big Sky) led the offense all game. Gosselin chipped in one goal and Becker put in four as the boys in black took down Selah 5 – 3 to start off the weekend. Goaltender Rian Tuttle also had a huge game in the winning effort, registering 11 saves.
In the second game of the day, the boys took on Hermiston in a game that would come down to the wire. The MEL defense played very flat in this contest, allowing more than 20 shots in the game, and the offense seemed stuck in a rut for the majority of the game. The offense did click for brief moments and showed what it was capable of, with balanced scoring coming off of ball movement. Matt Gosselin, Hunter Brandt (SO, Big Sky), Trevor Johnson (JR, Sentinel), and defender Joel Colbert (SR, Hellgate) all notched goals in regulation, with Coty Becker and Trevor Johnson also adding assists. Time expired in regulation with a 4 – 4 tie, which led to a tournament style “Braveheart” best of 3 finish. Lance Altmaier (SR, Hellgate) won his round, but Hermiston took the other two for a 6 – 5 overtime victory over the boys in black. Goaltender Rian Tuttle registered 6 saves in the losing effort.
Saturday’s game three match up brought on the host school, Three Rivers, who have a solid squad put together. Knowing that it would be their toughest game of the day and having to bounce back after a dissapointing loss, the boys showed a lot of heart for their final Saturday game. Gosselin chipped in two goals and Altmaier, Brandt, and Johnson each scored once during the contest, while Brandt and Becker each tallied an assist. However that would not be enough to take down Three Rivers, as the boys fell to 1 – 2 on the day with a 7 – 5 defeat. Goaltender Tuttle registered 10 saves in the game.
After a night of pizza and good sleep, the boys took the field again Sunday morning against Wenatchee Valley. The coaches were hoping some of the momentum the boys picked up at the end of Saturday would carry over to this contest, but that would not be the case. The defense allowed Wenatchee to get off 13 shots in the first half and the offense hardly even touched the ball. Failures in communication and a simple lack of hustle would allow the team to only generate poor shot attempts and the offense would end the day shut out. Goaltender Rian Tuttle and defender Joel Colbert played tough all game and held Wenatchee to only two goals, but with zero offensive production the team lost their final game 2 – 0.
The team would like to thank Three Rivers for putting on a fantastic event, we will see you again next year! We’d also like to thank all the parents who made the trip and who helped out a ton with coordinating things throughout the weekend, we couldn’t have done it without you. Thank you also to Gordy Pace for sharing some photos!
Next up for the Men’s Varsity team is a trip to Sandpoint this Sunday, May 2nd, for a double-header!
