The DVC Vikings treated its fans to a thrilling 9-5 win last Friday against Canada’s Simon Fraser University (SFU), reasserting their standing as a stellar lacrosse team.
Tension was high before the game, with the pressure of a win clear on the players’ minds. While the Vikings had dominated against St Mary’s College the previous week, the loss against Sonoma State forced the team to realize their weaknesses, motivating them to work even harder in preparation for this much anticipated match.
“We knew we had a very fierce opponent ahead of us,” explained captain and attacker Devon Bahary. “This week we practiced at the level we needed to in order to meet that challenge… and we really hit that challenge head-on. This (win) definitely showed us a lot of our potential.”
Potential indeed. Not only is the SFU Lacrosse team the only collegiate field lacrosse program in British Columbia to play in a U.S. league, but the team is ranked second in the Division I Pre-Season Coaches’ Poll (PNCLL).
If this reputation intimidated the Vikings at all, they didn’t let it show for long. A shaky start and a quick goal from SFU spurred the Vikings defense into action. Not only were they able to save attempted SFU goals, but they forced turnovers which allowed DVC to score three hard-earned goals in the first quarter.
SFU would not go down without a fight, however; the rest of the game would prove to be intensely physical with both sides fighting until the very end.
The second quarter was wrought with more turnovers, brutal tackles and cross-checking, and penalties for both sides. A fierce goal attempt from SFU was saved by Viking goalie Michael Schleicher at a cost; the ball slammed into his collarbone, forcing coach Wallahan to sub him off in favor for Alec Hamlin.
Midfielder John Soloman launched into an impressive offensive play where he scored almost single-handedly within twenty seconds of winning the following face-off. The defense continued to shine even without Schleicher, with Hamlin saving three of the attempted goal attempts from SFU.
“Defense played a stellar game,” said coach Wallahan when asked what ultimately won them the game. “Face-offs were awesome – we won almost 80 percent of the face-offs so that was really good. Offense struggled a little bit, but they got it together in the fourth quarter.”
The coaches used the halftime break to revitalize the Vikings offense. Despite the 4-1 lead, the coaches felt that the offense were unable to retain possession and take advantage of opportunities their defense was offering them. The defense continued to shut down SFU’s barrage of goal attempts until midfielder Octavio Martinez scored the Viking’s fifth goal, leading to a 5-3 lead.
Just as the Vikings offense began to gain momentum, they were struck with a crucial injury to Bahary. Following the subsequent man-down, SFU scored again to close the gap to 5-4. Undeterred, midfielder Cory Callahan answered SFU’s offense with a goal of his own, ending the third quarter 6-4.
The final quarter marked a change of pace for the Vikings, with both the offense and defense playing “smart lacrosse” to take complete control of the match. Three goals by Cal Boone, Michael Wells, and Jarret Hassfeld brought the score to 9-4.
A late turnover allowed SFU the rare opportunity to slip through the Viking’s defense and score a goal, but by then it was too late as the Vikings were able to hold on to their 9-5 lead until the end of the game.
“We were definitely ready for competition,” added Bahary. “And I think we brought it to them. We didn’t play to their level; we played above their level… I think they saw us as a lesser opponent. Towards the fourth quarter, we disciplined their defense a little more and that opened up a lot of opportunities for our players.”
The 9-5 result clearly illustrated the dangers of underestimating the Vikings. Their ultimate motivation? Proving their worth, clearly – but the promise of free pizza certainly didn’t do any harm!
The Vikings next home game is on Wednesday 17th Oct. where they will play Sierra College. You can also watch them play live by visiting www.ustream.tv and searching for “Diablo Valley Lacrosse.”
