As basketball playoffs have just started this week, it means that winter sports are coming to an end, and for the seniors, we have one season of sports left to be played. The Holy Family boys lacrosse team is getting back in gear and ready for the season.
The team went a solid 10-6 in the 2022-2023 season, with all six losses coming from what would eventually be playoff teams. The team has been growing year after year, and even had the chance to play some junior varsity games. The Tigers also went to the playoffs as the No. 18 seed, and were set to face a tough opponent in the No. 15 seed Green Mountain Rams.
The game was back and forth, and the Holy Family team would fall short, losing in what would’ve been a comeback upset, 13-12. The team was disappointed, but they knew they were returning all but three starters, and knew they had something to prove next spring.
Here we are, next spring, and the team is out practicing and has once again record setting numbers, solidifying a junior varsity team for the 2023-2024 season. The Tigers open up there season on the road in just two weeks, with a huge first game against the Northfield Nighthawks. The Nighthawks were one of six teams to get the better half of the Tigers last year, and earned themselves a first round bye as the six seed in the tournament.
After that, the season is in full effect, the Tigers will play five games in eight days, all in which they are the host team. The opponents during this stretch are, Palmer, Telluride, Littleton, Middle Park, finishing with Montrose. The team then has a quiet spring break, and will pick games back up on April 2nd, where they head north to face the Windsor Wizards. The Tigers will finish off non-conference games playing at Ponderosa and five days later, hosting the Golden Demons.
The team will then go into conference play, in one of the best conferences in 4A Colorado lacrosse. They went exactly .500 (3-3), with a few of the games being winnable. The team will kick off league play on the road, going to play in Conifer, and then against the runner-up state champions, Erie Tigers. The Tigers will then head back home to host the Resurrection Christian Cougars, before going back up north to take on the Thompson Valley Eagles. The team then finishes the season off, with games agaisnt Jefferson Academy, and Prairie View.
The team is getting excited for the season and has some good players returning. Midfielder Landon Peters, scored a team high 43 goals, as well as racking up 16 assists. Now sophomore, attackman Browen Wills finished the year with 31 goals and 11 assists. Other notable names on the offensive side of the ball being Michael Barela (25 points last year), Ashton Erickson (33 points last year) and Mason Wangerin (65 points last season).
On the other side of the field, defenseman Dominic Gabriel finished with 42 groundballs, and 26 takeaways.
