Utes Drop Opener in Denver, Introducing More New Faces, and Previewing The Season.
First off, a quick apology from me (Bryan) for the late newsletter this week. Let’s just say the universe wasn’t about to let me off easy this week, the good news being that the regular Monday edition will be returning…well, on Monday. Also, thank you to everyone who took the time to read our special edition on Wednesday, courtesy of Kenzie Christiansen. We love to highlight any and all good things happening in the state, so please reach out if you have something you’d like to have featured.
As always, we want to extend a huge thank you to our sponsors Tribal West Lacrosse (website) & MinersTown Strength and Conditioning (website), who make the great coverage here at ULR possible!
Utes Drop Season Opener on the Road Against Denver
The University of Utah Men’s Lacrosse team was picked to win the ASUN Conference to begin the year in the Preseason ASUN Men's Lacrosse Coaches Poll after their best season in team history, and while the road opener against the #17 ranked Denver Pioneers didn’t hurt the Utes chances of winning the conference, it certainly set the standard by which Utah will need to work in order to make good on the coaches predictions. Denver started off fast with three goals early in the first as Utah struggled with some face-off issues. Ryan Stines managed to stop the bleeding with the first goal of the season off the assist from Tyler Bradbury, but Denver would grab one more goal before the end of the quarter to lead 4-1.
The Utes would finally settle down in the second quarter though as Jordan Hyde scored two of his three goals, the first assisted by Bradbury again, to close the lead 4-3 before Denver connected on another shot with 3:18 in the second to take a two score lead into halftime.
After an early unassisted goal from Denver to start the second half, Hyde would again work his magic to bring Utah within two goals on another assist from Bradbury, who finished the game with three total assists but the scoring barrage would end there for the Utes as Denver would add six unanswered goals and would outshoot Utah 13-8 in the fourth quarter as the Utes had managed to keep the shots even for the most part until the last period. The Utes will look to rebound this weekend as they kick the home schedule at Rice-Eccles against the Marquette Golden Eagles. Game information for this Saturday is below, courtesy of the Utah sports information department via their website:
THE GAME
The University of Utah Lacrosse team is set to play its first game of the season in Salt LAX City, hosting the Marquette Golden Eagles on Saturday, Feb. 11 in Rice-Eccles Stadium. The game will start at 12 p.m. MT.
PREGAME TAILGATE
Utah will be hosting a pregame tailgate located in the lot off South Campus Drive directly East of Rice-Eccles Stadium. Fans can enjoy food trucks with 50 vouchers available to the first 50 fans. There will also be 200 beanies as a giveaway to fans with a DJ and a Salt LAX City photo op at the tailgate.
COMING TO CAMPUS
Parking for the game on Saturday is available in the Guardsman Lot, located off 500 south and Guardsman Way. Fans can then enter the stadium through Gate L. Concessions will also be open on the east side of the stadium for any interested fans.
HOW TO WATCH
The game against Marquette will be live streamed with links for the stream and live stats available on the Utah Lacrosse schedule page on www.UtahUtes.com.
TICKETS
Season and single-game tickets are available on UtahTickets.com. Fans can also contact the Utah Ticket Office by calling or texting 801-581-8849.
If you are planning to go to the game this weekend, get there early and you can secure one of these sweet beanies to stay warm!
Santa Barbara Shootout at the Santa Barbara Polo Club
by Kenzie Christiansen
WCLA D1
The Cougars and Utes arrived in sunny Santa Barbara Thursday, February 2 to compete in the WCLA D1 conference. Aggies are one day behind as they arrived Friday, February 3 to prepare for their first game Saturday.
BYU dominated Texas in a 14-5 win Friday Morning! The Cougars stayed strong as they defeated California Polytechnic State University, 16-7. With the two great wins the Cougars take second place Friday night just behind the Utah Utes. Saturday BYU had a tough fight with Arizona State, but the Cougars pulled through with a 10-7 win! BYU took their final victory over University of California San Diego, Saturday evening with a 16-8 score!! BYU ends the Santa Barbara tournament with an outstanding 4-0 weekend. Brigham Young University closed the tournament at the top of the charts! First place for our Lady Cougars!
The Lady Utes had a smashing win over Oregon State, 17-1 The Utes brought home another win for the team in Red over Oregon, 16-9 ending the night with Utah Women’s Lacrosse in first place for their bracket. Saturday morning the Utes had a fast awakening at their 8AM game as Washington brought in the heat!! It was a nail biting game but the Utes fell 1 point short of the victory leaving the game, 13-14. Nevertheless the Utes kept their heads held high as they stepped on the field with Minnesota Saturday afternoon, and had their final win of the weekend 14-11. University of Utah left Santa Barbara with a 3-1 record!
Utah State ran on the field Saturday morning to compete in a game against UCONN, regardless of their fight the Aggies ended the game a few points short, 9-13. Nearly 7 ½ hours later the Aggies stepped back onto the Santa Barbara polo field to duke it out with California Polytechnic State University. The Aggies increased their score from the game Saturday morning but it just wasn’t enough, 10-18. Utah State's Final game was Sunday afternoon against San Marcos, the Aggies had their best game of the weekend!(9-10) Regardless of the scores we can all stand by the fact that the Lady Aggies improved every step of the way.
WCLA D2
The Wolverines landed in beautiful Santa Barbara Thursday to prepare for play in the WCLA D2 conference Friday morning.
Wolverines played a competitive game Friday morning against Denver! Utah Valley pulled through with their first W of the day. (10-7). Wolverines busted out the gates hungry to defeat Central Washington. Those Wolverines left full and satisfied with an astounding defeat! (23-3). Utah Valley started their Saturday morning off with a jaw dropping win over Northridge, 22-0. The energy doesn’t stop there! The Lady Wolverines had a smashing win over San Marcos, 11-3. The Utah Valley University Women’s Lacrosse ended with a 4-0 and in First place in the WCLA D2 bracket!
“ The hard work and dedication of the players paid off, as we dominated on the field. We are all thrilled with the results and are eager to continue practicing to maintain our winning streak. Our team is excited to take on new challenges and keep bringing home victories in future!” - UVU
Needless to say Utah's College teams have shown their worth this past weekend in Santa Barbara. Congrats to all our participating teams on a well played weekend.
Previewing New Boy’s High School Coaches Around Utah
by Dane Stewart
Northridge
Coach Reed Keller
There will be a new Knight Leader for Northridge Lacrosse in 2023. We had a chance to talk with Coach Reed Keller about taking the reins. Coach Keller comes from Utah Military where he had been coaching and has full hopes of helping raise this program to a status where it can compete for Region titles and beyond.
He believes that status could arrive sooner than later. Coach Keller is excited to have Rusty Baldwin back for Northridge. Baldwin, a midfielder, is like the quarterback for these Knights who plays at both ends, but really help this offense execute to its full potential. Sophomore Finn Mohr will have a chance to really step up and help carry the offensive load as last year’s leading scorers Drew Tate and Trey Bowen have graduated.
Defensively they’ll return Callum Dibble in cage, who had a .505 save percentage as a Sophomore last year. CJ Campbell will help anchor an athletic defense. They will have some youthful poles, but Gage Mecham (LSM) will help bring further experience to the defense. Callum, CJ and Gage are all Juniors, and one of the reason there is optimism in this group.
Based on the fall, Coach Keller believes the early returns are positive, having made it to the semi’s down in Vegas while still feeling there is more room to grow. Coach Keller’s mantra for these Knights is simple: Believe. We’ll see if his belief resonates with his squad and whether it can help elevate this Northridge program in Region 5.
Mountain View
Coach Scotty Taysom
Last year was a rough year for Mountain View as the Bruins struggled to score and win games. But that is just the situation that excites Coach Scotty Taysom about Mountain View. While he has been a head coach for club teams and assisted, this will be his first head coaching position for a sanctioned varsity program.
Last year the low numbers on the roster contributed to some of the challenges the Bruins encountered. Coach Taysom finds joy in growing the game, growing programs, and helping the sport grow in the area and thrive. To help do this, Taysom recognizes the need to attract athletes from other sports, and helping create lacrosse players that maybe have not played before. He knows there is skill with this program but building their depth and their minds around execution will be early targets for Scotty.
He knows in trying to build a culture, JV and Varsity programs, that he’ll have to be nimble in his style. Its part of what is intriguing about the new job for Coach Taysom. He recognizes that sometimes building from good to great can take a little more time than starting from fresh. Its why he hopes this group can be competitive and secure region wins as soon as this year.
The sleuth of Bruins he puts together this year will go a long way in establishing the culture and success he believes can exist at Mountain View. They’ll certainly have opportunities to turn heads playing in Region 8. Pairing up a nimble style of play, with a coach that is driving towards growing program depth and a caring but successful culture, and this could be a team ready to surprise teams in 2023.
Spanish Fork
Coach Ellison Cabreros
When the head coach position opened, it was the perfect opportunity for Coach Ellison Cabreros to step in. He was an assistant under Jesse Thorpe, and now he has the chance to continue to build this program, adding his own stamp.
Lacrosse has a special connection with Ellison and his family roots. That connection with his heritage helps provide his belonging to the sport, a sense of obligation to further grow the game. Coach Cabreros has coached club lacrosse, and has watched his sons play, including his oldest at Utah Valley. He’s been a part of this sport for over a decade, and now seeks to give back to the sport, but also his community. That will include connecting with younger athletes, service projects, and creating an environment and program that can be the standard in the community and valley. Friday nights are going to be special.
The Dons have graduated their top scorers from 2022, but Cabreros believes Brandon Norris (younger brother of Aaron) can shine this year. Reece Cabreros will help orchestrate and push the offense, Will Gunther will be a young man to keep your eye on as he had a monster Freshman year. The defense will rely on playing youth last year taking their next steps forward in their development. Brigham Folsom played between the pipes on JV last year, but he’ll have the opportunity to be the guy for Varsity this year.
Coach Cabreros will start day 1 having familiarity with boys in the program, seeing how he coached many of his players since their youth. That will go a long way in keeping continuity through the coaching transition and helping build this program into the standard he desires.
Salt Lake Sixes Tournament Debuts at Spence Eccles Fieldhouse
from Kenzie Christiansen
Trilogy Lacrosse Tournament introduced Olympic Sixes to Utah High School Girls lacrosse on Saturday at their Salt Lake Sixes tournament at the Spence Eccles Field house. For those of us not as familiar with the Olympic Sixes here’s how it goes: ”Sixes is a fast-paced version of the sport played on a smaller field (70 x 36 meters), with fewer players (6 v 6), — all aimed at meeting goals towards potential Olympic inclusion for lacrosse.” (USA Lacrosse) Utah is very familiar with Tribal West Super Seven during the Fall, but as the sport grows so do the opportunities to learn new ways of playing! Congrats to Corner Canyon, Olympus Green, Brighton Orange and MT Lax for winning their pools. Full results from the pool play are available here.
Waterford Girls Lacrosse
Waterford Girls lacrosse has an amazing season ahead of them! Signing onto Waterfords coaching Staff is Head Coach Megan Whittle and Assistant Coach Alice Hadean!! For a sneak peak of a ULR upcoming special feature; Megan Whittle is a name all of the girls lacrosse world knows. The amazing alumni student athlete from Maryland, Professional Athlete for England and so much more, is leading Waterford girls lacrosse into an uphill direction.
“As a team we are excited to start a new chapter at Waterford Women's Lacrosse. We honor our past successes and the school's rich lacrosse history, and we’re grateful to write our own story this 2023 season. The Ravens are ready to discover the identity of this year's team. We are creating a "next play mentality" within our lacrosse culture at Waterford, which encourages us to learn from our past mistakes and successes, but always look ahead to the next task at hand.
The main goal for this spring is to play TOGETHER. Our team's core values are Trust, Bravery, and Respect; we intend to be confident in ourselves and our teammates on the field, trust each other and the coaching staff, and be brave when facing adversity. Our team won't take any opportunity to play this sport for granted - the game of lacrosse is such a special gift. We have 15 opportunities this spring season to play together and showcase our hard work. The coaching staff is so grateful for everyone at Waterford and elsewhere who help organize and facilitate our games, including game officials, coaches, referees, videographers, parents, and student-athletes. Seeing the sport of lacrosse grow in the state of Utah is just awesome. “ - Coach Whittle.
Jordan Girls Lacrosse
The beetdiggers are gearing up for a successful spring season. Former Assistant Coach Sariah Nock has been promoted to Head Coach! Sarah has a strong background in lacrosse, with 16 years of playing experience and former Defensive Coordinator at Utah Valley University! Assisting her this season is Spencer Nocks (Former Soccer and Football player of 14yrs) The captains leading this year's tribe is Sr. Adasia Johnson, Sr. Jane Harmer, Sr. Sydney Archer and Jr. Hannah Larsen.
This Spring season the beetdiggers are digging in the heels and striving for the top of their game. “This year it will be intriguing to see the team dynamicgiven we have half of the team being made up of returning players and the other halfbeing brand new to the sport. Sportsmanship is always something that is demonstratedat JHS. Last year, our main focus was on defense which is still something we will keep at theforefront this season, but we will be focusing more on endurance and conditioning thisseason in addition to those skills.JHS Lacrosse has a long history of tradition, our goal this year as coaches is to buildupon the tradition that was put in place before we got here and continue to grow theprogram. We hope that the program will double in size by this time next year.” - Coach Sariah Nock.
Thanks as always for reading, we appreciate the support and we’ll see you on the field!