Sailors boys lacrosse defeats Aspen, sits atop conference standings
Tom Skulski/Steamboat Pilot & Today
Tied at half with the top ranking in the 4A Western Conference on the line, Steamboat Springs boys lacrosse came out firing in the third quarter against Aspen on Wednesday, April 5.
The Sailors scored four unanswered goals in the third to build their lead before ultimately winning 9-6.
Junior Brady Adams opened the scoring for Steamboat just 11 seconds into the second half off a connection with senior Andrew Kempers.
Sophomore George Redfern’s two goals and senior Jeffrey Dodson’s goal in the third quickly followed, putting the visiting Skiers out of reach.
“The past couple games we came out a little slow in the third quarter,” Adams said. “In this game, we wanted to finish them there and come out strong, and we did that. We moved the ball around, picked apart their zone and got some goals.”
Going into the half, head coach Brian Rodgers said he and the other coaches took the players in to look at Aspen’s zone defense and found ways to get more motion underneath and open opportunities for scoring.
The strategy worked for the offensive surge, which was fueled by a stout Sailor defense. Rodgers said this was the best the team has done clearing the ball all season, and he expects more from his team moving forward.
Senior Ethan Hoy pointed to the pregame plan as the reason for the defensive success Wednesday night.
Tom Skulski/Steamboat Pilot & Today
“We just locked back in,” Hoy said. “This is one of our tougher opponents, especially on defense and coming into the game we were prepared for their sets.”
Now 3-0 in league play, the Sailors are sitting on a 5-1 record with no signs of slowing down. The team will travel to Battle Mountain for its next matchup on Friday, April 7.
The Huskies are 4-3 on the year but average 9.5 goals per game with a plus-20 point differential compared to Steamboat’s plus-41.
“Friday is now big,” Rodgers said. “That’s what happens when you’re up there: The next game is the biggest game. Battle Mountain is good, they had a one-goal game with Aspen. We’ll celebrate this win for another 30 or 45 minutes, and then we’ll get ready for Battle Mountain on Friday.”
Steamboat Springs 9, Aspen 6
SS: 2 2 4 1
A: 3 1 0 2
To reach Tom Skulski, call 970-871-4240, email tskulski@SteamboatPilot.com.
Support Local Journalism
Support Local Journalism
Readers around Steamboat and Routt County make the Steamboat Pilot & Today’s work possible. Your financial contribution supports our efforts to deliver quality, locally relevant journalism.
Now more than ever, your support is critical to help us keep our community informed about the evolving coronavirus pandemic and the impact it is having locally. Every contribution, however large or small, will make a difference.
Each donation will be used exclusively for the development and creation of increased news coverage.