High School First Round Previews, Utah Women's Lacrosse Heads to Florida, PLL Day Two Recap
Plus, our annual Bracket Challenge is back!
WHAT. A. WEEKEND. I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did. For me, it began on Friday night streaming the Judge v. Farmington game on kslsports.com. Judge executed its game plan really well and earned an 8-3 win.
I then high-tailed it out to Herriman for the PLL games. I missed the first game (sad face) but was able to catch up with Ryan Stines, who scored his first PLL goal, in the press area. So happy for him. He’s an incredible person and an incredible lacrosse player.
Saturday began with the MCLA Championship at 9:00 am, then the High School Bracket Reveal at 10:00 am then the PLL games at 2:30 pm and 5:00 pm. I sat next to the PLL DJ at the top of the stadium and came to the conclusion he has the best job in the league or at a minimum, the least stressful. After the Archers win I chatted with Patrick Sanger, who has been shooting lacrosse for ULR for a long time then headed to the press conference with Coach Bates, Stines and Pederson. It was a great time as the Arrowhead guys and Sean Walker from KSL were there to ask questions. After, I was walking out as the sun was setting and an overwhelming sense of gratitude came over me. I’ve found a lot of inspiration in the travel moments of lacrosse: walking out of a venue late at night, sitting in a plane on a tarmac or listening to lacrosse podcasts on the way to a game. It’s a great time to reflect and ponder. I talked to a lot of great people this weekend who care a lot about our sport, from Logan to St. George, and want it to continue to succeed. We’re lucky to be part of the best sport in the best state.
As the next two weeks wind down the 2026 season, I want to thank you for letting the Utah Lax Report come along for the ride. None of this is possible without you, the fans, the readers, the coaches, the players, the officials, the contributors, the photographers, the videographers, the facilities crews, the ADs and everyone else I missed. Now on to the action!
ULR Photo of the Year Contest
For those who have been following along, we have been teasing the ULR Photo of the Year Contest. All the information you need can be found in this document. Please tell your team photographers, student photographers and anyone else who has taken a lacrosse photo this year!
The theme is ‘Spirit of the Game’. We’re looking for any and all photos that can be tied to the theme.
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College
Mens
In case you missed it, the BYU Cougars beat Virginia Tech on Saturday in the MCLA D-I National Championship, 16-13. Gavin Taylor had 8 goals with a hurt shoulder. Mason Quick had 3 goals and 2 assists. Hutton Murphy had 4 goals and 3 assists while Stew Vassau had 1 goal. It was an incredible season for the Cougar offense who seemed to feed the hot hand each game with several players contributing including the four above and Cade Kirschner. BYU had Quick and Taylor tally over 100 points. The Cougar defense was stellar with goalie Easton Wilkey leading the way with 22 saves. Andrew Hunt, J.P. Jones, Luke Tucker, Jackson Wall, Taylor Crump, Sawyer Beck, Isaac Anderson, Marcus Ball, Britain Barker, Devin Nguyen, Dylan Johnson and Jack Leiseth were key for the Cougars defense. You can see the Cougars depth was a big reason they were able to overcome the Hokies. The Bennion brothers won 10 faceoffs.
In the NCAA ranks, Jon King (Corner Canyon) and Penn State beat Army and will now take on Princeton on May 17. In D-II, Hunter Keller (Davis) helped Lewis win its first round game against Newberry and will face No. 1 Tampa on Wednesday. In D-III, Reid Vandenberg (Park City) and Babson beat Massachusetts Maritime and St. Lawrence on the weekend and will now take on RIT. Cooper Stauffer (Waterford) and Bowdoin beat Scranton and Stevens and will take on Hope on Friday. Tufts and the Beyer brothers (Park City) will face York (PA).
Elevate Lacrosse is Utah’s leading development AND elite girls’ and boys’ lacrosse program since 2012. Learn more at utahelevate.com.
Womens
The Utah Women’s lacrosse team is heading to Florida this week to open up play in the WCLA Tournament.
“We’re psyched,” said Utah Head Coach Glee Corsetti. “We’re the only team from Utah going and doing it with 12 underclass girls who are playing is amazing and so inspiring for the future of the program. We’re excited for this dynasty these seniors have contributed to and I’m so excited that so many are up for national awards.”
The Utes are the No. 12 seed and will take on No. 5 Michigan.
“It’s going to be a good game but we’ve prepared for it and I believe they’re beatable,” said Corsetti. “Our defense is locked and ready and our attack has brand new plays, found their “homes”, and found the net. We have midfield transitions to shift up legs and circle players and some killer draw takers.”
Streaming can be found on usalacrossetv.com.
In the NCAA tournaments, Olivia Prosper (Juan Diego) and Stanford beat the Anné sisters (Olympus) and Penn State on Friday then the Cardinal beat Michigan on Saturday and will now face North Carolina on Friday.
In D-II, Emmery Clark (Herriman) and Maryville beat Rockhurst and will now take on UIndy on Saturday. Rebekah Bargeron (Mountain Ridge) and Florida Southern beat Tampa and will now face Flagler on Friday.
All college scores, recaps, schedules, live stream links and more can be found on our Scores page.
High School
Join the Utah Lax Report Bracket Challenges by filling our your brackets! Prizes will be awarded to the winners!
Final Brackets
Girls 6A | Girls 5A | Girls 4A
Vessel Kitchen is the proud sponsor of the 2026 Boys’ and Girls’ Coaches Polls. Visit one of 10 locations across the Wasatch Front for a great postgame meal!
Boys’ Week 10 Coaches Poll
Region Results
Here are the Region winners!
Region 1 - Farmington
Region 2 - Mountain Ridge
Region 3 - Corner Canyon
Region 4 - Park City
Region 5 - West Field
Region 6 - Alta, Brighton
Region 7 - Wasatch
Region 8 - Timpanogos
Region 9 - Snow Canyon
Region 10 - Waterford
Region 11 - Bear River
Playoff Outlook
6A First Round
There’s just one game in the 6A First Round and it’s No. 17 Layton heading to No. 16 Cedar Valley on Tuesday. Both teams fell to their common opponents who were Davis and Bingham. Henry Bitner and David Murdock lead the Lancers in points while Kaleb Davis and Jake Huffaker lead the Aviators. The winner will take on No. 1 Corner Canyon on Thursday.
5A First Round
No. 9 West Field v. No. 24 Roy - These two squads have played twice already with West Field winning both games, 15-4 on 4/15 and 21-5 on 5/8. The winner will face No. 8 Olympus on Thursday.
No. 10 Pleasant Grove v. No. 23 Salem Hills - The Vikings beat the Skyhawks, 16-5, on April 22. The winner will face No. 7 Judge Memorial on Thursday.
No. 11 Box Elder v. No. 22 Hillcrest - Box Elder comes into the game at 13-4 with losses coming to Bountiful, Farmington and twice to West Field. The Bees are hoping to get back into the Quarterfinals after making it in 2024 but missing by a goal last year. The winner of this game will head to No. 6 Timpview on Thursday.
No. 12 East v. No. 21 Viewmont - The Leopards scored 220 goals this season and allowed 180. Viewmont scored 100 and allowed 209. This one will lean towards the Leopards are 10-7 and enter the game having gone 3-2 in its last 5 games. The winner will face No. 5 Bountiful on Thursday.
No. 13 Payson v. No. 20 Woods Cross - These two squads faced off on March 4 with Payson winning 12-1. A lot has happened since then but Payson is still the favorite in this one. Both teams are scoring around the same amount of goals per game but the Payson defense is allowing almost half of what the Wildcats defense is. The winner will take on No. 4 Wasatch on Thursday.
No. 14 Spanish Fork v. No. 19 Fremont - These two teams didn’t play each other and have no common opponents which makes sense with the geographic distance between the two schools. The stats favor Spanish Fork but you never know what the Silverwolves have in store come playoff time. The winner takes on No. 3 Alta on Thursday.
No. 15 Springville v. No. 18 Skyline - This should be a great battle on Tuesday. Both teams beat Salem Hills and Viewmont but lost to Payson. I think the Springville defense will be the difference in this one. The winner will play No. 2 Brighton on Thursday.
No. 16 Northridge v. No. 17 Maple Mountain - Northridge hosts the Eagles and will hope to take home a playoff win. Micah Olsen is approaching the 100 point mark this season and will be the one to look to for the Knights. The winner head to Park City to play the No. 1 seeded Miners on Thursday.
4A First Round
No. 12 Dixie v. No. 21 Pine View - Dixie won the first round of this matchup on March 25, 10-2. The Panthers will look to pull off the upset! The winner takes on No. 5 Sky View on Thursday in what will surely be the longest distance between teams in the playoffs.
No. 13 Jordan v. No. 20 Mountain View - The Beetdiggers won this game on April 17, 12-4. The Bruins are averaging just 3.9 points per game so Jordan is the favorite here. No. 4 Green Canyon awaits the winner.
No. 14 Crimson Cliffs v. No. 19 Desert Hills - These two are familiar with each other having played twice so far this season. Crimson Cliffs won both games. The first game was 17-3 but the second was just 7-3. This should be a classic matchup with the winner heading to No. 3 Bear River on Thursday.
No. 15 Hurricane v. No. 18 Cedar - Hurricane beat the Reds on April 1, 10-8. The Tigers are scoring more goals per game but the Reds won’t care. This should come down to the wire. The winner faces No. 2 Waterford on Thursday.
No. 16 Canyon View v. No. 17 Orem - Both teams lost to Spanish Fork and Crimson Cliffs. Both teams are scoring nearly the same amount of goals per game but the Canyon View defense has allowed 118 goals less. The winner faces No. 1 Juan Diego on Thursday.
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Boys Spotlight Game of the Week by Hill and Hill Photography
Week 10 – Copper Hills vs Skyline
In a regular-season finale that lived up to the hype, the 5A Skyline Eagles narrowly escaped with a 12–11 victory over the 6A Copper Hills Grizzlies. Following a festive Senior Night, the Eagles dominated early; Luke Carlston opened the scoring just a minute in, followed quickly by goals from Brady Child, Mitch Nielson, and Peter Thompson to secure a 4–0 first-quarter lead.
The advantage grew to 5–0 early in the second before the Grizzlies found their spark. Led by Gage Holder’s three goals and Parson Duncan’s stellar goaltending, Copper Hills cut the deficit to 6–3 by halftime.
Skyline appeared to put the game away in the third quarter, regaining momentum with a four-goal burst from TJ Brown, Duncan Monahan, and Child to build a commanding 10–3 cushion. However, the Grizzlies mounted a late-game surge. Behind Carter Kesler’s dominance at the face-off X and an incredible eight-goal performance from Holder, Copper Hills went on a 7–0 run to tie the game at 10–10 with just three minutes remaining.
In the final moments, Skyline’s Monahan and Child answered back to reclaim a two-point lead. Though Holder scored once more with 37 seconds left to keep the pressure on, the Eagles controlled the final possession to seal the win.
Girls’ Week 10 Coaches Poll
Region Results
Region 1 - Farmington
Region 2 - Riverton
Region 3 - Skyridge
Region 4 - Park City
Region 5 - Fremont
Region 6 - Olympus
Region 7 - Salem Hills
Region 8 - Provo
Region 9 - Hurricane
Region 10 - Judge Memorial
Region 11 - Bear River
Playoff Outlook
6A First Round
One game in the first round on Tuesday, with No. 16 Westlake taking on No. 17 Layton. The winner of that game will then go on to play top seed Skyridge on Thursday. The two teams are pretty evenly matched, so it will be interesting to see who advances.
5A First Round
There is a lot of action on Tuesday in the 5A playoffs. First, No. 16 Woods Cross will face off with No. 17 Box Elder. The winner of that match will then head to play the top team in the division, and possibly the state, Park City.
Elsewhere in the state, No. 9 Payson will battle No. 24 Viewmont, with the winner of that game slated to play No. 8 Pleasant Grove.
No. 15 West Field will play No. 18 Springville to see who will take on No. 2 Fremont in the next round. The Longhorns have a better record going into the game, and goalie senior MacKenzie Souza has an impressive save rate, so they are likely to take the win.
In a Weber County face off No. 23 Roy will play No. 10 Bonneville, with the Lakers expected to advance to the next round and compete against No. 7 Clearfield. And No. 14 Northridge will play No. 19 Maple Mountain.
In the Salt Lake valley, there will be several great contests, with No. 20 Skyline playing No. 13 Wasatch to see who will take on No. 4 Brighton, while No. 12 Hillcrest will play No. 21 Bountiful, and No. 11 Alta will play No. 22 Timpview.
4A First Round
This could be the most interesting playoff series in the state this year. These teams have been battling all year and have had some surprising results.
In a cross-state game, No. 17 Mountain Crest will travel south to play No. 16 Snow Canyon. Both teams are coming into the game with more losses than wins on their scorecards, so it will be interesting to see who comes out on top to face top-ranked Bear River later in the week.
No. 9 Ridgeline will face off against No. 24 Uintah. The Riverhawks have had an uneven season, but should advance from this game. Keep an eye out for top scorer Eme Welker.
In what could be the most interesting game of this first round No. 18 Juan Diego will travel north to take on No. 15 Logan. While Juan Diego has played well at home, they haven’t done well on the road, so we will see if they can pull it off.
In the southern part of the state No. 10 Canyon View will play No. 23 Pine View to determine who will head to Salt Lake City and play No. 7 Highland on Thursday. Looking at the records for both teams it will likely be Canyon View, but you never know what might happen.
Also in the southern part of the state No. 13 Desert Hills will play No. 20 Cedar. It looks to be Desert Hills game to lose, and sophomore Mady Eriksen is not likely to let that happen.
Two teams that are very well matched going into the first round are No. 14 Orem and No. 19 Crimson Cliffs. They will play in Utah County for the first round.
Finally, in Salt Lake, we have No. 12 Jordan playing No. 21 Mountain View, and No. 11 Waterford playing No. 22 East. Both Jordan and Waterford are expected to come out on top. Waterford could be a wild card here moving forward. They have been pulling off some surprising upsets.
Girls Spotlight Game of the Week by Hill and Hill Photography
Week 10 - Bonneville vs Northridge
The Utah Lax Report “Spotlight Game of the Week” delivered on its promise as the Northridge Knights fended off a massive second-half comeback by the Bonneville Lakers. With 5A playoff seeding at stake, Northridge utilized the energy of Senior Night to dominate early, controlling possession for nearly the entire first quarter.
The Knights stormed to a 10–2 halftime lead, fueled by a balanced attack from Mollie Larsen, Roxey Roberts, Sadie Carter, and Sarah Larsen. Bonneville’s only early answers came from Stacey Tesch, who began what would become a dominant six-goal performance with a first-quarter penalty shot.
The momentum shifted entirely in the second half. Led by spirited play from goalie Grace Ludlow, the Lakers’ defense tightened, sparking a six-point third-quarter explosion. Goals from Tesch, Aniston Clawson, and Miley Falk cut the deficit to 11–8 heading into the final frame.
The fourth quarter saw Bonneville pull within a single goal after strikes from Tesch and Aspyn Cornia. However, the Larsen sisters provided a crucial defensive stand to halt the Lakers’ run. Despite Tesch adding two more late goals to her tally, a timely insurance goal by Roberts allowed Northridge to lock in the 14–12 victory.
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PLL
Day One was recapped in our Saturday newsletter which you can read here. Day Two was just as exciting with the Waterdogs beating the Whipsnakes, 16-14. Michael Sowers had 3 goals and 2 assists while Jack Hannah had 2 goals and 2 assists. Connor Kelly had 2, 2-point goals. Connor Farrell went 18-28 at the faceoff X then celebrated the win at JCW’s. Matt DeLuca had 15 saves. Matt Brandau had 4 goals and 1 assists for the Whipsnakes.
In the nightcap, the Archers beat the Outlaws, 10-7. Connor Fields had some incredible goals and finished with 3 goals and 1 assist. Sam King had 2 goals and 2 assists while Ryan Stines had 1 goal and 2 assists. Beau Pederson had a goal and an assist. The Archers defense was the star of the show holding the Outlaws scoreless in the fourth quarter which hasn’t happened since August 10, 2024 when the Chaos blanked the Outlaws in the second quarter that game.
Interview w/ Beau Pederson and Brett Dobson
The latest episode of the Utah Lacrosse Report podcast features Archers’ stars Beau Pederson and Brett Dobson.
Hope you enjoy the show!
Listen on Spotify
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That’s it for this week! See you on the sidelines.