SALT LAKE CITY – South Carolina kept the powerful offense of undefeated top-seed California in check, holding the Bears to under 10 goals for the first time all season, and defeated the Bears 13-8 in the Division I championship game of the 2019 MCLA National Championships powered by Under Armour at the Salt Lake City Regional Athletic Complex on Saturday afternoon.
The championship was not only the first in Gamecocks’ (21-2) history, but South Carolina becomes the first program from the SouthEastern Lacrosse Conference (SELC) to raise MCLA hardware.
Cal’s dynamic duo of Brendan Cook and Jake Pistotnik gave the Golden Bears (17-1) a 2-1 lead after the first quarter and the tandem scored again in the second frame. Griffin Giles, Gordon Palmer and Sam Weis countered for South Carolina as the game went into halftime tied at four.
With a ferocious run over a five-minute period at the beginning of the third quarter, South Carolina put Cal on its heels. Addy Lutes started the run on an unassisted marker at the 13:41 mark of the third and then capped it off four goals later with 8:56 remaining the half to give the Gamecocks a 9-4 lead.
Jake Lombardo responded by putting the Bears on his back, scoring three straight goals to end the quarter – two on assisted by Michael Bellas – that trimmed the margin to 10-7 heading into the fourth.
Giles converted his hat trick midway through the fourth to push the lead to 11-7 before Lombardo converted his fourth straight to narrow the gap to 11-8. The Bears would get no closer.
Colin Hains had 14 saves for South Carolina and was named the Most Outstanding Player of the Championship game. Giles finished with four goals while Weis added two goals and an assist.
Lombardo’s five points (4g, 1a) led the Bears while Cook chipped in with two goals and three helpers. Nick Beattie had 13 saves in the losing effort.
St. Thomas Claims Sixth D-II Title
SALT LAKE CITY – On the strength of a big first quarter, St. Thomas held off Dayton, 9-7, to win the Division II title game at the 2019 MCLA National Championships powered by Under Armour held at the Salt Lake City Regional Athletic Complex on Saturday.
The championship is No. 6 for St. Thomas, tying them with Colorado State for most titles in MCLA history.
After 10 minutes of scoreless end-to-end action, the Tommies (11-4) broke through with a Nick Bunde goal off a dish from Jack Stanchfield. The lead expanded to 3-0 by the end of the first quarter as Bunde struck for his second.
The lead ballooned to 5-0 with 12:03 left in the second frame when Stanchfield set up Bunde for his hat trick. Riley Baumgartner pushed the lead to 6-0 with less than three minutes to play.
Sam White staunched the bleeding for Dayton (12-4), send the Flyers into the halftime break down 6-1. White’s goal was the first of three straight that cut the St. Thomas lead to 7-3 after three quarters.
Stanchfield pushed the lead back to 8-3 to open the fourth quarter, but a goal by Ryan Lamoree and two more by White trimmed the margin to 8-6 with just under four minutes to play.
The two teams would trade goals in the final minutes before the Tommies burned off the clock for the championship.
Stanchfield finished with two goals and three assists and was named the Most Outstanding Player of the championship game. Drew Bouman made nine saves for the win.
White’s five goals led both teams. Mitch Nietupski finished with 10 saves.