Evolution of Utah Lacrosse, KSL Game of the Week, Coaches Poll, and UVU Women's Lacrosse Making History.
By: Megan Chambers
Welcome to this week's newsletter! We've got some exciting updates, including live game recaps from the coaches' poll, the evolution of Utah Lacrosse, KSL's first game of the season, and recaps from women's college lacrosse games.
ULR sponsors make this all possible. Visit our title sponsors Tribal West Lacrosse (website) & MinersTown Strength and Condition(website).
Tribal West Lacrosse is offering free shipping during the 2024 season by using promo code FREESHIP24 at tribalwest.com
The Evolution of Utah High School Lacrosse Sanctioning
In Utah, big changes happened in high school sports when lacrosse became official for boys and girls in 2018-2019. The Utah High School Activities Association (UHSAA) made this happen, letting lacrosse be part of official school competitions.
At first, only 12 girls' teams got recognized when lacrosse became official. But things kept growing, and by 2020, both boys and girls lacrosse were fully official. This was a big deal because it meant that more students could play lacrosse at school and compete at a high level.
Since then, lacrosse has become super popular in Utah. Lots more teams joined in, with around 60 girls' teams and over 65 boys' teams playing. And guess what? Nine more girls' teams are getting recognized in the 2024-2025 season, showing that lacrosse is getting even bigger.
Making lacrosse official in Utah was a really important step for high school sports. It showed that lacrosse is valued and can make a positive impact on students' lives. As more students play and enjoy lacrosse, its place as a beloved high school sport in Utah is secure for years to come.
A Closer Look at KSL Sports Rewind
Being the most in-depth coverage of Utah High School Sports, including lacrosse, KSL Sports Rewind is an important and reliable component of Utah lacrosse reporting. KSL Sports Rewind coverage ranges from Live Stream Games, Weekly Recap Videos, Top 5 Plays & Performances, Rankings and Interactive Pick’em Videos of high school boys lacrosse, and most recently as of 2022, reporting on high school girls lacrosse. As a viewer, you can relive past games within KSL’s archive (going back to 2009) or get up-to-speed on games happening right now. With the Rewind Sports Network you can watch content centered on your favorite teams via their YouTube account (www.youtube.com/@rewindsportsnetwork) and/or Instagram ( @kslsportsrewind ), today!
KSL Game of the Week: Park City Miners vs. Mountain Ridge Sentinels
We are buzzing with excitement for this week’s girls lacrosse KSL game of the week; Park City versus Mountain Ridge on Tuesday March 12th under the home lights of the Sentinels at 7pm.
Mountain Ridge made it to the 6A championship last year, secured the 2023 region 3 champion title, and held a 6-0 record region in their previous season. With Angie Maughan continuing to coach the Sentinels with determination, prowess and skill, they defeated Davis in their first game this season (12-5) on March 5th. With skilled and seasoned players like Emmery Clark, Taya Clark, Brielle Fabert and Liv Mackey we are excited to see their team chemistry in the midfield and on attack against the Park City Miners.
Unlike the Sentinels, this is Park City’s first game of the 2024 season on Tuesday. The Miners were second in the state for the 2023 season, next to Olympus, have been top ten in the 2024 Coaches’ Poll and were recognized to win region championship this season, being led by returning Coach Mikki Clayton. Committed to striving for excellence and finding success with the new season roster including a mix of new and returning varsity players, Sophie Neff and Charlie Lacobelli will be the ones to watch commanding the midfield, while Coco Crawford, Maddie McHenry, Lily Yatkeman and Megan pose formidable challenges across the entire field for the Sentinels.
This non-conference game will be a great edge-of-your-seat experience with both teams having a history of being power houses in Utah girls’ lacrosse.
No. 1 Corner Canyon – Once again Corner Canyon solidifies their place in the No. 1 seat in the ULR Coaches Poll. The Chargers defeated Northridge on Friday (3/8) on their home turf. Winning 12-3. Next for the Chargers is March 19th hosting Riverton.
No. 2 Olympus –Olympus came swinging out of the gates playing their first matchup against No. 10 Lone Peak. Olympus took the win by 12-2. Titans crown Senior Midfielder Jarom Gilbert as this game’s MVP. Stated by Coach Merrell “Jarom did an excellent job hustling and making winning plays. He scored, assisted his teammates, made the extra passes, and rode hard on defense.” The team is excited to get the first win, but lots to clean up and continue to build on.
No. 3 Brighton – The Bengals competed in two non-Region games on Saturday (3/9). In the first matchup against Ridgeline, they secured a victory with a score of 16-2. Then, facing Sky View in the second matchup, the Bengals emerged victorious with a score of 18-2. The top athletes in the Ridgeline game were: Senior. Donovan Wismer, who let off 4 lightning strikes of goals, 1 Ground Ball, and 2 Turnovers, Senior. Luke Reece with 3 Goals, 3 Assists, 3 Ground Balls, 2 Turnovers and 3 Take Aways. During the Sky View game, we saw Sophomore. Gabe Carrera emerge with 7 Goals, 2 Assists, and 1 Takeaway. Next up for the Brighton boys is a home game against non-region opponent Box Elder on Tuesday (3/12).
No. 4 Fremont –The Silverwolves have already secured themselves three wins this season, 16-2 against Riverton, 18-3 against Cedar Valley and 11-7 against Roy. Next up is Home game against Green Canyon on Wednesday (3/13).
No. 5 Davis – The Darts had a shutout game on Wednesday (3/6) against Bear River, winning 13-0. Coach Yocom named Hunter Keller as the game’s MVP, stating, “He helped us secure the shutout and made multiple big saves. He was excellent on the clear and in running our defense.” The Davis boys faced American Fork next, securing a 12-4 victory. Coach Yocom shared his final thoughts on the Bear River game, saying, “Bear River is a tough and athletic team. They will be formidable opponents all year long, and we learned a lot about our strengths and areas for improvement.”
No. 6 Park City – Park City will square off against No. 10 Lone Peak at the miners' home turf on Tuesday (3/12). Park City returns top athletes like Senior Garrett Hebert, Senior Tripp Hopkins, and Junior Reece Smith, who are expected to make significant contributions to the team this season.
No. 7 Farmington – The Phoenix will face Bingham at their home nest on Tuesday for their season opener.
No. 8 Alta – Alta will kick off their season with a game against non-region opponent Northridge on Tuesday (3/12) at their home turf. The Hawks have the advantage of two returning powerhouses, Senior Braxton Horoba and Senior Andrew Parry, who are expected to make a big impact on the team's performance this year.
No. 9 American Fork – The Cavemen suffered a defeat against the No. 5 Darts on Friday (3/8), with a score of 4-12. Senior Chaz Mooney raised as the top scorer for the Cavemen striking with 2 elite goals, 2 Ground Balls, and 3 Turnovers. Next, American Fork will take on non-region Roy on Tuesday (3/12) at the Caveman grounds.
No. 10 Lone Peak – After one week in the Knights' schedule, they stand at 3-1 for the season, securing victories against Maple Mountain (3/6) with a score of 10-6, Sky View (3/9) with a score of 8-6, and Ridgeline (3/9) with a score of 10-3. However, the Knights faced defeat against No. 2 Olympus (3/7) with a score of 12-2.
No. 1 Park City – This week, Park City has moved up a position with their first game of the season approaching on Tuesday (3/12) against non-region opponent, Mountain Ridge. Their varsity team having a great mixing bowl of talent, a couple to look out for; Charlie Iacbobelli (138 career goals, 38 career assists scoring 176 career points with career shot percentage at 99% and CTs totaling 74), Macy Hoeksema (56 career goals, 22 career assists) and Sophie Neff (108 career goals, 42 career assists) will be only a few of the Park City returning players that will be bringing the heat this season.
No. 2 Olympus – As we move into the second week of the 2024 season, Olympus has moved down a position in the weekly coaches’ poll despite their win in their first game against non-region opponents, Farmington, at home (23-5) on Friday (3/8). Olympus head coach, Zana Spratling, names Hazel Baker as MVP of their game against Farmington as she “picked up stats all over the field…being a leader on attack by giving her teammates 6 assists and ripping 4 goals herself, responsible for 10 of our 23 goals shows drive” – Nice work, Hazel!
No. 3 Mountain Ridge – With the Sentinels gaining a win in their first game of the season, Mountain Ridge moved up a position in the weekly coaches’ poll. Their home game this past Tuesday (3/5) against non-conference Davis Darts secured their first win of the season (12-5). Despite being tied 4-4 at halftime in a nail-biting match, Mountain Ridge managed to limit Davis to just one goal in the second half. Meanwhile, the Sentinels scored 8 goals, thanks to stellar performances from athletes such as junior Kalli Guymon (3 goals, 2 caused turnovers), junior Olivia Cannon (3 goals), and senior Emmery Clark (73% draw control).
No. 4 Lone Peak – Lone Peak holds steady in position No.4 of the coaches’ poll with their first game around the corner at home on Thursday (3/14) against non-conference opponents, Skyline. Some players that are bound to stand out this season is the well-rounded junior and captain Lily Brown, junior Maya Siri, senior Sarah Bartholomew and senior captain Katrina Maddox.
No. 5 Bingham – Despite a victory in their first game of the season against Pleasant Grove, Bingham has moved down two positions this week. While playing away this past Wednesday, Bingham ended the game two goals ahead (final score 9-7), with head coach Courtney McCabe naming Sophie Grizzle MVP of the game explaining how she “was a monster on the circle with 14 GBs and 2 goals. Looking forward to getting to make more tweaks and getting better”. With Bingham’s home game against non-region Davis coming up on Tuesday (3/12), Coach McCabe reflects on their first game of the season and how their “midfield was so strong in this game [against Pleasant Grove] and carried a lot of momentum coming into the season.”
No. 6 Brighton – Holding strong at position six in the weekly coaches’ poll, Brighton has yet to play a game this 2024 season. Using this time to prepare for their first game of the season this upcoming week against non-region opponent, Skyridge, on Wednesday (3/13) on the away field.
No. 7 Farmington – While staying in the top 10, the Phoenix lacrosse ladies lost their first game of the season while playing away at Olympus on Friday (3/8), ending the game with a final score of 5-23. Head coach Chris MacAulay nominated Ally MacAulay MVP of the Olympus game due to her scoring 3 goals for Farmington and further expresses that “despite not having the team at full strength, they persevered through extreme circumstances to put in a very hard fought game”.
No. 8 Davis – Davis is new to the top ten of the coaches’ poll after playing in two games this past week where they lost to Mountain Ridge (5-12) on Tuesday (3/5) but defeated Herriman (10-9) on Thursday (3/7). Head coach Makenzie Hekking reflects on their first game of the season against the Sentinels and explains how “the score does not accurately reflect how close this game was. We were tied 2-2 at half…communication started breaking down on defense and offense was plagued by turnovers in the second half which led to the eventual spread in scoring.” Despite the loss, Coach Hekking explains how they are not discouraged because the team played hard and found parts of their game they’re focused on improving to take on the rest of the season. Senior Jacey Compton, named MVP against Mountain Ridge, is brand new to goalie, only a couple days into the season. Despite this, Compton had 9 saves on 12 goals allowed (42.8%). Davis’ second game against Herriman named Mackenzie Coleman MVP with 2 goals, 7 draw controls and won 55.6% draws, commanding an impressive offense while her defense stats were notable as well with 4 ground balls and 5 caused turnovers.
No. 9 Fremont – Welcome to the top ten of the Coaches’ Poll, Silverwolves! Fremont secured a win during their first game of the season at Pleasant Grove on Friday (3/8). Having scored 6 goals at half to Pleasant Grove’s 2 goals, Fremont came out on top ending at 10-5. Head Coach Seth Jones selects McKaylee Sargent, team captain, as MVP against the Vikings due to her confident leadership and field awareness to make game decisions while simultaneously leading the team in goals (4). Coach Jones expresses how “there were a lot of things we learned, [but] most important we learned the time you put into developing your skills off the field…is crucial to building a well-rounded player. We also learned we have a long way to go to get where we want to be”. Good luck this week against Copper Hills on Tuesday, Silverwolves!
No. 10 Herriman – The Herriman Mustangs moved down one position in the weekly coaches’ poll after unfortunately taking a loss by only one goal against Davis on Thursday (9-10). Players that stood out during this game are senior Shelby Ulibarri (3 goals, 1 assist), senior Zee Smith (2 goals, 1 assist), and Ava Moore (82% draw control). The Mustangs’ three caused turnovers that kept this game a nail-biter were a group effort by Gracee Bolton, Ava Moore and Kaelyn Hart.
Women’s College
Utah Valley Makes History for their program: In an exciting lacrosse game held at BYU on Saturday (3/9) Utah Valley University made history by defeating Brigham Young University with a final score of 15-12. Both teams played hard from beginning to end, showing strong determination. UVU worked together as a team, showing great skill and precision in their plays. BYU showed resilience and never gave up, but UVU's strong performance earned them their first-ever win against BYU. The game was thrilling to watch, with impressive lacrosse skills on display from both teams. Fans can't wait to see what happens in future matchups between these competitive teams.
UVU Next Matchup
Fri Mar 15 - 3:00 PM MDT vs Colorado Utah Valley University, West University Parkway, Orem, UT, USA
BYU Next Match up
Fri Mar 15- 11:00 AM MDT vs Colorado BYU Provo, UT, USA
Southern Utah 2024 Season: In their recent games, Southern Utah's lacrosse team had some tough times. They lost to the University of Denver and Colorado State on February 23rd, with scores of 7-13 and 4-11. But they didn't give up. On February 24th, they came back strong and won two games. They had a close match against Air Force Academy, winning 10-9, and then won decisively against Colorado School of Mines with a score of 15-7. Even though they faced challenges, the team showed they can bounce back and compete well against different opponents.
SUU Next Matchup
Sat Mar 30 - 8:00 AM MDT vs Northwest Nazarene Boise State University, West University Drive, Boise, ID, USA - Lincoln Field
University of Utah: In the Utes' recent lacrosse matches, Utah's team showed great strength, growth and determination. They began with a strong win against Utah Valley on February 10th, with a score of 16-10. On February 16th, they traveled to Michigan and narrowly won with a score of 14-13. The next day, they faced UCLA 'A' and won by a close margin of 9-8. In their second game on February 17th, they kept their winning streak going by beating Northeastern University 15-10. Their success continued into March when they defeated Colorado State with a score of 14-2. These victories highlight the team's impressive performance and ability to compete against different opponents.
Utes Next Matchup
Sat Mar 23 - 1:00 PM MDT Utah TBD
Utah State: In a bunch of tough lacrosse games, the Santa Barbara team showed how good they are and how they never give up. First, on February 2nd, they lost to Colorado 7-14, but they quickly turned things around by beating Oregon State 17-9 on the same day. The next day, they had close games against Michigan State University and CSU San Marcos, but unfortunately, they came up short, losing 12-13 and 7-9. But they didn't let that get them down. On March 3rd, they got back on track with a big win against Colorado State, winning 12 at USU. Even though they had a close loss against Boise State on March 8th, with a score of 11-12, they came back strong with awesome wins against Montana State University and Air Force Academy on March 9th, winning 8-6 and 11-10. These games show how determined and skilled the Santa Barbara team is!
USU Next Matchup
Sat Mar 23 - 1:00 PM MDT Utah TBD