SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – A dominating defensive performance over the final 34 minutes of the match helped the College of Idaho rally for a 13-9 upset victory over No. 3-ranked Grand Valley State in the quarterfinals of the Men's Collegiate Lacrosse Association Division II National Championships at the Salt Lake City Regional Athletic Complex.
The win for the Coyotes (14-0) moves the squad into Thursday's national semifinals and a match-up with No. 2-ranked St. Thomas (Minn.) on Thursday at 1:45 p.m.
"The boys dug deep and played solid lacrosse," said head coach
Matt Gier. "What a great win!"
The Lakers (8-3), the 2014 MCLA national champions, allowed a season-high in goals – as
Ryan Henning scored three goals and added three helpers in the win for C of I.
GVSU came out firing on all cylinders, building a 5-1 lead early in the second quarter, before the Yotes found their offensive rhythm. Freshman
Logan Buckley scored in transition and senior
Jason Leach pulled the team within 6-3 midway through the period. After a Lakers goal, Henning scored through a double-team and 20 seconds later,
Hank Ontiveros won the face-off, sprinted into the offensive zone and scored – as C of I cut the gap to 7-5 at the break.
Following a lengthy halftime break due to lighting issues at the venue – C of I dominated the final 30 minutes.
Tyler Sanchez scored in the crease off a Henning feed; Leach scored unassisted and
R.J. Walker finished a Henning pass to give the Yotes their first lead at 8-7 with 7:21 left in the quarter.
The Michigan squad pulled even at 9-9 early in the fourth quarter before the Yotes put it away. Goalie
Cade Brown sprinted in a counter-attack into attacking-third finding Henning for a goal, with
Joey Brant finishing on back-to-back attempts to push the lead to 12-9.
Casey Davies put the exclamation mark on the win with a late goal through a triple-team.
"It was a different kind of a game," said Ontiveros. "It was muddy – but we had our goalie go down and get an assist and one of our poles got his first goal of the year. We played as a team – this was a great win."
Leach, Sanchez and Brant all had two goals for C of I – the lone unbeaten team in the MCLA.
