Author: Brian Salgado

by Brian Salgado

Marquette University’s Joe Amplo Brings Worldwide Success to Wisconsin

Joe Amplo is living the lacrosse lifer’s fantasy these days.

Not only is he the men’s lacrosse head coach for Marquette University – a program on the rise in just its eighth year of existence with a 6-5 overall record (2-1 in the Big East Conference) this season – but he also served as an assistant coach on the U.S. men’s lacrosse team, which won the final game over Canada last August at the Federation of International Lacrosse (FIL) World Championships in Israel. He also has been tapped as an assistant for the 2022 national team, which will compete in the FIL tournament in British Columbia.

“It’s a dream job,” Amplo said of his post with the U.S. national team. “It’s cool that I had that opportunity and I can talk about it to people [in Wisconsin] and make the lacrosse world seem a little bit smaller to folks around here.”

Amplo served as an assistant in charge of defense under John Danowski, who coached Amplo at Hofstra and currently runs the Duke men’s lacrosse program.

“It’s about who you know in the world, and [John] is a good one to know,” Amplo said.

As Amplo quickly discovered, coaching professionals at the international level is completely different than running an NCAA Division 1 program. For starters, Amplo and his coaching colleagues only had seven interactions with the national team before a three-day training camp just one week before the start of the tournament. After that, the U.S. team came together for two weeks in Israel, where Amplo saw the players gel as a cohesive unit.

“That’s when we saw the growth of the team and the uniqueness of the experience was evident,” Amplo said. “I was curious to see if we could build a team that feels like a team compared to the college environment. Can this group of human beings that is great at the game fall in love with each other and become a team in that short amount of time?”

A 9-8 victory over Canada in the FIL championship game is proof it is possible. Amplo learned that time is irrelevant when players come together for a common goal – even when they’re the best in the world with the egos to match.

“What’s relevant is there has to be this reward at the end that everybody wants so badly, and there has to be clarity from whomever is in charge that this is who we’re going to be,” Amplo said. “These men didn’t care to be the superstar and didn’t care who got the credit — all they wanted to do was win.”

Even though Amplo now has international lacrosse experience on his resume, he is still keeping an eye on the Wisconsin scene. His elite travel club — Amplify Lacrosse — sponsors the Wisconsin Lacrosse Federation’s Boys High School Game of the Week, which gives Amplo a front-row view of the growth of the sport locally.

“The game is growing exponentially and the talent level is rising,” Amplo said. “This is now becoming an unbelievably fertile recruiting ground we have to look at. We should have at least one player each year that we should strongly consider or recruit from the state of Wisconsin.”

The Wisconsin lacrosse community reached a major milestone during Marquette’s recent scrimmage against powerhouse Maryland. At one point, the Golden Eagles featured three Wisconsin-based players – Logan Kreinz (Kettle Moraine), Jordan Schmid (Kettle Moraine) and Quintin Arnett (Arrowhead) – on the field at the same time.

“I turned to the bench and said, ‘There are three guys on the field from the state of Wisconsin playing against the University of Maryland on a lacrosse field,’” Amplo said. “That is remarkable.”

by Brian Salgado

Arrowhead’s Defense Takes Down Homestead

Putting up nine goals on a conference foe in Wisconsin’s infamous early spring weather conditions is usually a recipe for success. Keeping the ball away from that same opponent is can lead to a dominant performance.

Arrowhead relied on time of possession, converting on man-up situations and a solid defensive effort to defeat Homestead, 9-4, Thursday evening at Taraska Stadium for its first Classic 8 – Red victory of the season.

“Defensively, I thought we were stout tonight,” Arrowhead coach Jake Sweitzer said. “Our slides were in place, they were timely, and we denied them a lot of their stronghand looks.”

Arrowhead (3-1, 1-1 Classic 8 – Red) fell behind, 2-1, toward the end of the first quarter when Homestead’s Brendan O’Brien was in the right place at the right time for a lucky bounce that found its way into the net.

The Warhawks regained the momentum in the second quarter when they scored two goals within a minute of each other in the second quarter. Homestead (2-2, 0-2) surrendered the first of two man-down goals in the game to Owen Arnett with 7 minutes, 19 seconds left in the first half, tying the game at two. Caden Bence connected on an assist from Joshua Nielsen just 49 seconds later to give Arrowhead the lead for good.

“We struggled moving the ball a little bit, but we found ways to put the ball in the back of the net,” Sweitzer said. “A win is a win, we’re proud of it, but we’re going to keep improving, that’s for sure.”

Arrowhead would tack on two more goals in the third quarter for good measure. Joshua Nielsen scored his first of two goals on an assist from Coleton Borkowicz early on in the second half. In one of Arrowhead’s seven man-up situations, Borkowicz found Connor Koppelman for one of his three second-half goals with just over 4 minutes left in the quarter to put the Warhawks up, 5-2.

“Once you get that man-up offense going, the team gets the wheels rolling,” Koppelman said. “And every time that man-up comes around, everybody is ready to rip it.”

The season is still young, but any victory in the perennially competitive Classic 8 – Red is always invaluable.

“This conference is pretty loaded top to bottom, so getting a win here is always a good thing,” Sweitzer said.

For Homestead, Henry Robbins scored two goals in the fourth quarter.

This weekend, Arrowhead travels to Missouri to take on St. Louis University High School, Eureka and De Smet Jesuit. Homestead heads to Waukesha Tuesday night.

Each week WisconsinLacrosse.com will highlight a select game from around the State of Wisconsin. Made possible by a donation from Amplify Lacrosse.

by Brian Salgado

Wisconsin Lacrosse Community Comes Together to Bring the Sport to Milwaukee

There’s no question lacrosse has experienced meteoric growth throughout Wisconsin. The participation numbers on the boys’ and girls’ sides of the sport grow exponentially season to season, and new programs sprout every year at every age level. Geographically, lacrosse’s allure has touched just about every part of the Dairy State.

However, as prominent as the sport has become, lacrosse has yet to truly take hold in within Milwaukee’s borders.

On Sunday, the Wisconsin Lacrosse Federation (WLF) led the charge to rectify that situation by hosting the Sankofa Clinic, a diversity and inclusion initiative backed by U.S. Lacrosse aimed at exposing lacrosse to underpriviledged and economically challenged communities.

Courtesy  James Ninomiya

Created in 2013, the Sankofa Lacrosse Alliance (SLA) focuses on supporting efforts to expand the reach of the sport. The SLF draws from its network of players and coaches, including many of the nation’s top current and former African-American players.

Spearheaded by Randy Kohn, a past president of WLF, the clinic was an overwhelming success. A picture-perfect day, weather-wise, saw over 60 athletes interacting with over 50 volunteers at Journey House Packers Field in Mitchell Park on Milwaukee south side.

“To start here and see the number of kids here is kind of overwhelming,” said Erin Ennis, president of the WLF. “The event itself, I think, is fantastic to increase the participation rate down here. The volunteers that have come down from the universities and the various high schools shows the outreach and the willingness to give back to the game and give back to the community that we have here in southeast Wisconsin.”

WLF may be the governing body of lacrosse in Wisconsin, but many organizations came together to make the Sankofa Clinic a reality. Journey House – a not-for-profit focused on empowering families on Milwaukee’s near southside neighborhoods – provided Packers Field for the occasion and had roughly 20 athletes participate in the clinic. PeppNation – another nonprofit that offers after-school programs, summer camps and other events throughout southeastern Wisconsin – also brought the event to the attention of its athletes while donating t-shirts for the occasion.

Courtesy  James Ninomiya 

A handful of Marquette University men’s and women’s lacrosse players dedicated their Sunday morning to the cause, as well.

Marquette University High School boys coach Rich Pruszynski brought a handful of coaches and players to help run the clinic for the boys’ side. University School of Milwaukee girls coach Sam Adey brought coaches and athletes to volunteer, as well.

As the nationwide governing body, US Lacrosse works with the local organizations to plan and implement thee clinics. Sankofa-affiliated players serve as the instructors.

Bryce Woodson, Midwest regional manager for US Lacrosse, was one of a handful of former players leading drills for the athletes at Packers Field. He said he has run Sankofa Clinics and similar events throughout the region, but seeing so many people from different parts of the Wisconsin lacrosse community join forces for this initiative is what stood out Sunday morning.

Courtesy  James Ninomiya 

“I think the fact there’s multiple organizations coming together is incredible,” said Woodson, who played collegiate lax at Ohio State. “Having all this collaboration and group effort for one goal is amazing.”

Spreading the Word

Exposing athletes to the sport is just one of the many barriers to entry underprivileged communities encounter with lacrosse. Once the excitement is in place, a myriad of costs – registration fees, equipment, uniforms, etc. – often stand in the way, as well.

Pruszynski believes once kids are ready to join an organized team in Milwaukee city proper, there is plenty of money to be found to make sure the infrastructure is in place to give them a place to play lacrosse.

Courtesy  James Ninomiya 

“The big key here is, we have to eliminate the barrier to entry, which is money,” said Pruszynski, who also is a senior manager for the Positive Coaching Alliance. “We can continue to get the word out to kids here today to make sure we capture that excitement from today. Once we get these kids saying ‘yes’ to lacrosse, we can continue to work with US Lacrosse and write some more grant requests for more equipment and opportunities.

“If we can get over that hurdle by US Lacrosse assisting with donations, then we’ll be fine,” Pruszynski adds.

Starting from Scratch

Charles Brown knows a thing or two about launching athletic programs. As deputy director of Journey House, he plays a major role in the organization’s youth athletics programs, which include baseball, football and basketball. He knows what it takes to build the infrastructure of a youth sports program.

Courtesy  James Ninomiya 

He also knows what it’s like to get in on a new sport at the ground level. Brown’s love of lacrosse started in the 1970s when his high school in Baltimore launched a program. He played in the first two seasons of a new program his junior and senior years.

He brought his passion for the sport with him to Milwaukee, and ever since joining Journey House 15 years ago, he has wanted to bring lacrosse to his athletes.

Brown knows it will take a lot of work to launch a new program, but it starts with exposing more kids in Milwaukee to the excitement of lacrosse. On Sunday, about 20 of his 100 football players attended the clinic.

“But you got to start it if you’re going to expose them to it, and the clinic provides that,” Brown said. “We’re going to get a program, we’ll have a team, and more kids will see

Catching Lax Fever

The excitement was palpable throughout the morning as kids learned the very basics of the sport from Sankofa’s instructors, elite players themselves. Athletes were taught how to cradle the ball in the nets of their sticks, how to fire a shot at the goal with force and accuracy, and how to position their entire body to ensure they catch the ball in the air.

Most of all, they learned that a sport they hadn’t given a second thought before participating in the Sankofa Clinic was more fun than they could have imagined. Take it from Roseana Mendez, an 11-year-old pioneer in her own right who tried lacrosse for the first time Sunday morning. She already plays football and baseball on all-boys teams, often as the only girl on the squad.

“I really didn’t know anything [about lacrosse] other than from movies and shows that I’ve seen,” Mendez said after the clinic. “Then I came here and started understanding the sport. It’s an interesting sport, it’s new to me, and I would like to try it.”

by Brian Salgado

Verona Defeats Waunakee for Fifth Title in Team History

The Verona boys lacrosse team wasted no time in relishing the opportunity it had to play in this year’s state championship game against Waunakee.

Just three days after taking out the top team in the state, Kettle Moraine, in the semifinal round of the playoffs, the Wildcats used a frenetic sense of urgency and a stifling defense to overwhelm Waunakee en route to a 9-4 victory. The win gave the Wildcats their fifth championship in program history out of eight appearances in the final game, and their first title since 2014.

“This is a team that expects to be here on a regular basis,” Verona coach Nathan Lutterman said. “We talked about very early wanting to ride a wave of emotion coming out, and we wanted to keep our positive energy up and not succumb to the negative energy.”

There wasn’t much for Verona (13-6) to be negative about Saturday night at Carroll University’s Schneider Stadium in Waukesha. The Wildcats jumped out to a 6-1 lead over Waunakee (19-3) by the 1 minute, 44 second mark in the first quarter. Verona played a press defense that forced countless turnovers by the Warriors, and they won most of the faceoffs, keeping Waunakee on its heels most of the first quarter.

“We really tried to get on their hands and pressure the ball out a lot,” Verona senior defender Declan Makuch said. “We were able to keep their points down and not let them score, and our offense helped us put some goals up.”

Senior attacker Ian Edwards put Verona on the board early on, scoring at 10:07 in the first quart. He assisted on another goal at 9:26 when he found sophomore middie Xavier Howard with a dish.

After Waunakee got on the board, Verona started a 4-0 run led by two goals from sophomore middie Haakon Anderson to take a 6-1 lead. The Warriors – who defeated Verona twice during the regular season – wouldn’t get within four goals the rest of the game.

Lutterman credits Verona assistant coach Sam Prete, the team’s defensive coordinator. The Badgerland Conference’s assistant coach of the year developed the game plan that saw the Wildcats hold their final four opponents to six goals or less.

“We saw today exactly the job he did when he came up with what he wanted to do with that Waunakee offense,” Lutterman said.

Along with the stellar defense, Edwards credits a moment of clarity for him and his teammates after the loss to Sauk Prairie in the Badgerland Conference tournament for the Verona championship run. He said the Wildcats had fallen victim to “heroball,” where every player tried to take things into their own hands when things aren’t going right for Verona. After the conference tournament, the Wildcats began playing as a team instead.
“Everyone bought into that, and it showed,” Edwards said. “After everyone became so selfless, it has been an amazing thing to be a part of.”

Despite the loss, Waunakee can celebrate a successful year as well as a solid foundation for the future of the program.

“The group had an exceptional season, and we played at a high level in almost every game,” Waunakee coach Michael Reiter said. “We played, in my opinion, as good as we’ve ever played.”

by Brian Salgado

Verona and Waunakee to Face Off in All-Madison State Championship Game

This was supposed to be the Year of the Lasers.

Kettle Moraine was getting plenty of press, traveling throughout the United States and Canada to play top-notch non-conference competition and returning to Wisconsin to rack up an undefeated in-state record.

But then the Lasers encountered Verona in the state semifinals. Now the state final game looks like a Madison-area block party as Verona faces Waunakee Saturday night at Schneider Stadium at Carroll University.

“No doubt, this is big for us as an area,” Verona coach Nathan Lutterman said. “Historically, Madison has been a stronger area than Milwaukee. But this year Milwaukee had the top-end teams while Madison year in and year out has a much deeper conference.”

Verona (12-6) is peaking at just the right time. Yes, the Wildcats already lost to Waunakee twice this year, but they have defeated the Middleton and Sauk Prairie in Madison Area-Red play. They also beat independent powerhouse Hudson, as well.

Lutterman chalks up the rough stretches to a a learning curve within his squad, which boasted the second-highest RPI in the state behind Kettle Moraine.

“I think for large stretches of the year we were learning to trust each other as a team,” Lutterman said. “We were just learning to trust our teammates, learn the system and not rely on just one or two people to play the game. And you see it when you look at our playoff results.”

Those results include holding Middleton, Appleton United and Kettle Moraine to just six goals apiece.

Waunakee will have to contend with senior attacker Ian Edwards, who is a two-time All-American who set the program record for points in a season this and is close to scoring 300 points for his high school career.

For Waunakee, this is the Warriors’ fourth appearance in the title game with coach Michael Reiter at the help. They have lost their last two title games, including one versus Verona that went into overtime.

Waunakee – making a consecutive tournament appearance after losing to Kettle Moraine last year – is guided by senior leadership. The Warriors boast about eight athletes with two seasons on the varsity squad.

Senior attacker Jarrett Wulf leads the offensive attack with with 42 goals for the season. Reiter calls senior middie Jeremy Werner one of the best two-way midfielders the state of Wisconsin has ever seen.

Senior middie Connor Smith also had 30 goals – many of them in clutch situations – on the season. On defense, a pair of brothers mind the opponent: senior defenseman Alan Olkowski and sophomore goalie Ray Olkowski.

by Brian Salgado

Gimme 5! ‘Retooled’ Arrowhead Red Wins Fifth Consecutive State Title

This was the year Arrowhead Red finally was supposed to be vulnerable.

The Warhawks graduated 19 seniors in 2017. They were forced to promote four freshmen to the Red roster. They weren’t expected to mesh so quickly.

But Tom Truttschel and his storied Arrowhead Red found a way to once again dominate the competition en route to an unprecedented fifth consecutive state championship, defeating University School of Milwaukee (USM) 6-4 Friday night at Schneider Stadium at Carroll University in Waukesha.

“We retooled bigger than we ever have had to, and to have all these young players come together with these older players and really gel into one team,” Truttschel said.

Arrowhead Red (19-3) jumped out to an early 3-0 lead by relying on a couple familiar faces for the program. Senior middie Abbey Lippold scored first at 19 minutes, 57 seconds in the first half, and junior middie Jacklyn Batley followed up with another goal just 23 seconds later. The pair joined forces at the 7:05 mark when Lippold scored off a Batley pass, as well.

“This season, we started a lot of our games kind of slow on the offensive end,” said Lippold, who will play lacrosse for Marquette University next spring. “For us tonight, it was really important to have that strong offensive start.”

USM (16-3) responded with two goals late in the half. Senior middie Grace Berrien scored twice within 19 seconds to cut Arrowhead’s lead to one with 1:07 to go before halftime.

But Arrowhead squashed any potential momentum when junior middie Coryn Tormala put away a pass from freshman attacker Sydney Schultz as time expired to regain the two-goal lead.

The Warhawks extended their lead to 5-2 at the 11:26 mark of the second half when junior attacker Madelyn Dingmann scored on a pass from sophomore middie Stephanie Curry. The squads held each other in check until USM’s senior attack Hailey Stephany and Berrien scored within 11 seconds of each other to cut Arrowhead Red’s lead to one once again with 1:52 left to play.

However, the Wildcats couldn’t put away the tying goal, and senior attacker McKenna Lorenz’s insurance goal with 17 seconds left in the game sealed the title for Arrowhead Red.

“I thought they went down a little early and fought back like I knew they would,” USM coach Samantha Adey said. “Offensively, we couldn’t quite find the rhythm until late in the second half, and inevitably we came up short.”

Twelve years and seven titles later, one might wonder what keeps Truttschel motivated season after season. He simply fell in love with the sport once his daughters took an interested, and even with all his success, he doesn’t see that dying out any time soon.

“The rewards of getting the most out of the girls — that’s what keeps me coming back,” Truttschel said. “As long as I’m loving it, I’ll keep coming back.”

by Brian Salgado

University School of Milwaukee Faces Arrowhead in Rematch of 2015 Final Game

As if it already hasn’t been a memorable season for Samantha Adey, she has the chance to make it one for the ages when she leads the University School of Milwaukee girls lacrosse team into tonight’s Wisconsin Lacrosse Federation state championship game against Arrowhead Red.

Earlier in the season, she notched the 100th win of her coaching career, which happens also to be the 100th win of the USM program she founded 10 years ago. And tonight at Carroll University’s Schneider Stadium starting at 7:30 p.m., Adey will lead her program to its second title game since 2015, facing Arrowhead Red in a rematch of that loss three seasons ago.

“Three years ago this was a mismatch, but it’s not as much of a mismatch this year,” Adey said. “This is as talented a lacrosse teams we I’ve seen in the state, and I have every reason to believe we can win Friday.”

It’s difficult to argue with that assessment. USM (16-2) is led by senior midfielder Grace Berrien, an All-American, first team All-State selection and a member of the Classic 8 all-conference first team. After finishing the 2018 regular season with 34 goals, nine assists and 47 draws won, she’ll take a gap year to travel through South America before attending the University of Virginia.

The Wildcats are also led by senior attacker Brook Uihlein, who led the team with 36 goals during the regular season. She also scored the game-winning goal Tuesday night in USM’s semifinal game against Whitefish Bay/Nicolet/Shorewood with less than 2 minutes to play.

Berrien and Uihlein also are the two Wildcats still in the program who played against Arrowhead Red for the state title back in 2015. But three years is a long time in high school athletics, and Adey said her senior captains have grown a great deal.

“I think they’re totally different women and leaders than they were three years ago,” Adey said. “They are leaders on and off the field, and I think their level of composure on the field is different, too.”

Another year means another trip to the title game for Arrowhead Red (16-3), who will be playing for a fifth consecutive title. It is coach Tom Truttschel’s seventh appearance in the title game, as well.

This iteration of Arrowhead Red’s state finalist squad is unique because of the youth it features on the roster. The Warhawks won the Classic 8 Conference with an undefeated record despite having four freshmen on the Red team for the first time since 2012. However, those freshmen come with serious pedigree.

Freshman attacker Kylee Manser, for example, made Team Wisconsin earlier this season, becoming one of the top 22 girls in the state invited to play in a national tournament on the East Coast over Memorial Day weekend. She has 48 goals for the season, tied for the team lead with junior midfielder Jacklyn Batley.

“[The freshmen] have been looking forward to the chance to get onto Arrowhead in general, but when they made Arrowhead Red, it was like, ‘Wow,’” Truttschel said. “It has been a while since we’ve had freshmen on our team, so it means a lot to them. And they became part of a strong team with our seniors, juniors and sophomores — they weren’t out on an island.”

The Arrowhead Red youth movement is led by upperclassmen with plenty of championship experience. Along with Batley, senior middie Abbey Lippold scored 41 goals for the Warhawks, and junior middie Coryn Tormala added 38 goals, as well.

by Brian Salgado

Arrowhead Red Heads to Fifth-Straight State Title Game

All it took was that first goal to set the tone for the Arrowhead Red girls lacrosse team on Tuesday night.

When junior middie Coryn Tormala scored on a pass from senior middie Abbey Lippold just 21 seconds in the the Warhawks’ state semifinal game against visiting Franklin, Arrowhead Red coach Tom Truttschel knew his youthful squad would be brimming with confidence the rest of the way.

The Warhawks rode that wave throughout the entire game, never trailing the Sabers en route to an 8-6 victory that sent Truttschel to his fifth straight state championship game and seventh overall.

“We talked about having a strong start, and that’s just what we needed,” Truttschel said. “It just builds confidence among the team.”

With its long history of success in Wisconsin girls lacrosse, Arrowhead Red (16-3) rarely has been short on confidence as a program. However, the Warhawks have been short on experience considering the Red roster features freshman for the first time since 2012.

The upperclassmen took over this game for Arrowhead as Tormala finished the game with four goals, including three goals in the first seven minutes of the second half.

“She really ignited the beginning of the game and the beginning of the second half,” Tormala said.

Tormala and Lippold were joined by junior middie Jacklyn Batley to give Arrowhead a significant advantage in the draws. The Warhawks won roughly 70 percent of the draws against Franklin (13-4).

The defense and goalie junior Abby Rick did their part for the Warhawks, who eventually held a 7-2 lead with 16 minutes, 28 seconds in the second half.

However, it looked as if the momentum was about to shift for Franklin as the first half came to a close. With about 2 minutes left before halftime, Arrowhead Red found itself in a player-down situation, and the Sabers brought the pressure. The Warhawks responded by disrupting three shots that veered far from the goal.

“It’s always nerve wracking to be a player down, but I didn’t even realize we were down,” Rick said. “We have a really good system to keep everyone on the ball and make sure we have the cutters picked up.”

Franklin coach Jill Kyhn admitted her squad fell victim to the pressure of facing a perennial powerhouse like Arrowhead Red, which disrupted the discipline and ball control the Sabers had been known for in 2018. It also didn’t help that a handful of Franklin’s shots on goal clanged off the pipes.

With the loss, Kyhn’s tenure as coach of the program she launched is one game away from ending. She will coach her last game for the Sabers Friday afternoon in the state third-place game at Carroll University in Waukesha. Kyhn also announced that senior defender Amanda Wachter won the 2018 Jackie Pitts Award as the top senior in Wisconsin.

Arrowhead advances to play University School for the 2018 state championship. Opening draw takes place Friday at 7:30 p.m. at Carroll University’s Schneider Stadium in Waukesha.

 

This season WisconsinLacrosse.com highlighted a select game each week from around the  State of Wisconsin. Made possible by a donation from Home Instead Senior Care

by Brian Salgado

Kettle Moraine Rolls Past Sauk Prairie to Advance to State Semifinals

If the Kettle Moraine boys lacrosse team is just now hitting its stride, the rest of state tournament field should be worried – more than usual, that is.

The Lasers entered their third-round playoff game versus Sauk Prairie undefeated in the state of Wisconsin. But Monday’s 18-6 victory could be considered the team’s most convincing win yet, which is saying something for a squad that’s now 12-0 against its in-state peers.

“This was the first game of the season that we saw them play the full 48 minutes, which was nice to see,” coach Michael Stefan said. “We started out fast, which we hadn’t been doing very much of at all this year, then we continued that throughout the whole game. Being able to play together collectively and selflessly was big for us.”

Sauk Prairie (12-6) managed to get on the scoreboard first when sophomore middie Riley Jelinek scored off a pass from senior attack Bryce Thistle with 9 minutes, 58 seconds left in the first quarter.

It would be the Eagles only lead of the game, however, as Kettle Moraine (14-7) took a 10-0 run into the 7:25 mark of the second quarter. Junior attack Jonny Licau scored six of his seven first-half goals during that run.

“We’ve got a few weapons, but he had a good matchup, so we kept exploiting it until they made a few adjustments,” Stefan said. “They gave him a few opportunities and a few looks, and because he is a great player, he was able to capitalize.”

Junior middie Caleb Hotchkiss scored two of his three goals in the opening minutes of the third quarter. When Sophomore Carson Winzer followed up with his third goal of the game with 9:25 left in the third, it gave Kettle Moraine a 12-goal lead and the winding clock for the remainder of the contest.

Even with the Lasers’ North American barnstorming tour this year, Licau said he and his teammates still have plenty to prove here in the Dairy State. This victory was a statement of things to come for Kettle Moraine.

“The difference tonight is we came in with intensity,” Licau said. “Tonight we really wanted to win and show Wisconsin what we have so we can come into the next game with ample power.”

Kettle Moraine advances to face Verona, who gave the Lasers their biggest in-state challenge on May 5 in a 12-8 contest that was tied entering the fourth quarter. Verona defeated Appleton United, 16-6, to move on to the semifinals.

Each week WisconsinLacrosse.com will highlight a select game from around the State of Wisconsin. Made possible by a donation from Amplify Lacrosse.

by Brian Salgado

Shorthanded Franklin Defeats Arrowhead White to Continue State Title Quest

Injuries to key starters and steamy weather conditions could have been a recipe for an upset in the second-round matchup between Franklin and Arrowhead White girls lacrosse teams.

But the healthy Sabers – the No. 4 team in the state – managed to step up for injured starters sophomore Kendra Haselow and senior Bella Barnard and soundly defeated the Lady Warhawks 12-4. The Sabers advance to host Waunakee Saturday.

“It’s really hot and we’re a bit low on numbers,” coach Jill Kyhn said. “For us to be running a limited number of girls in this heat, we played unbelievably well.”

Franklin (13-3) jumped out to a big lead in the first half and never looked back. Sophomore middie/attack Jillian Krueger led the charge, scoring four of her game-high five goals in the first half. Senior middie/attack Allie Marion scored three goals in the game, as well.

“We played really disciplined ball, which is critical, especially when you’re low on subs in this heat,” Kyhn said. “When we get off to a good start, we tend to stay good. It builds so much confidence.”

Along with Krueger and Marion’s scoring barrage, Kyhn credited the players who filled in admirably for Haselow and Barnard. Haselow tore her ACL against Mukwonago May 10, and Barnard twisted her ankle representing Team Wisconsin on the East Coast over Memorial Day weekend.

In Barnard’s place, senior Brianna Tobin stepped up to play significant minutes at middie – a position she hadn’t played much this year. Sophomore Lauren Schwartz pitched in, as well, by stepping into the draw circle versus Arrowhead White (5-10) without missing a beat.

“We have a bunch of players that can play multiple positions,” Marion said. “So for us seniors, that was a big role they had on their shoulders, and we appreciate it a lot.”

Despite the heat and the shortened bench, the Sabers pulled out the victory to extend the season for at least one more game for the outgoing Kyhn and the class of 2018. Even though they earned the No. 4 seed and a first-round bye, the Sabers want to prove they are among the state’s elite programs.

“There were a bunch of things that happened this season where people were overlooking us,” Krueger said. “We’re excited to show what we’re made of and what Franklin lacrosse has to offer.”

Each week WisconsinLacrosse.com will highlight a select game from around the State of Wisconsin. Made possible by a donation from Home Instead Senior Care