Lacrosse prepares for spring season
Sophomore Chris Nagel led the lacrosse team to an overtime victory against Kansas.
Published Oct. 17, 2006
One of the newcomers fighting for a roster spot on the packed lacrosse team is Blake Schleider, a Columbia native who transferred from Texas A&M. Schleider scored a goal against Washington University on Saturday.
Schleider said he was "lucky to get matched up with a guy with his back to me."
He said the goal relieved a lot of his stress from before the game and that he felt more confident afterward.
The Tigers tied Washington University at 5 in the first game and came back for a 7-6 win against Kansas in overtime during a doubleheader on Saturday.
Both games are part of the team's fall ball season. Fall ball is used for off-season preparation for the team's competitive spring season — similar to spring training in baseball.
Coach Kyle Hawkins said between games that his team has a lot of talent but that he would have liked for them to play better. Three newcomers to the team scored goals in the game, which could help earn their spots in the spring.
Hawkins said the fall season offers him a chance to make cuts and institute new offenses and defenses. The team still has to make cuts as more than half the current roster are freshmen.
After a break of about two and a half hours following the Washington University game, the Tigers were back in action against the Jayhawks. The first half was defensive, with the score of 0-0 after the first quarter and 1-1 at halftime.
Kansas took a 3-1 lead early in the second half, but the Tigers came back to tie. The teams traded goals and found themselves at 5-5 late in the fourth quarter when sophomore Chris Nagel scored a goal to give MU a 6-5 lead.
"It had to be done," Nagel said.
But the game was not over that easily. Kansas would score again in the final seconds to tie the game. After the officials met with the coaches, they decided that there would be a sudden-death overtime period. Nagel scored again to give the Tigers the victory.
"I just knew that our team needed this win," Nagel said.
Hawkins said he left the second game feeling better about his team's performance.
"They played better defense and better transition," he said.
After the game, team member and club president Andy Mackley said he was excited for the upcoming spring season. There is a final alumni game on Sunday at Stankowski Field before practice for the spring season starts at the end of winter break.
Mackley said he was especially excited to play with the newcomers on the team. He said he hopes trips to Boston and San Francisco will help bring in future recruits as the team gains exposure and tries to prove it is capable of competing against schools from both coasts.