Senior attackman Mike Kammes tallied two assists against both Michigan State and Wayne State on Saturday. Photo by Josh Adams NOTRE DAME, IND. – The Taylor University men’s lacrosse team wrapped up its 2016 season Saturday afternoon under crystal clear blue skies and sunny and 75 degree weather in Notre Dame, Indiana, falling to Michigan State 6–2 and defeating Wayne State 6–5.
In the first game of the afternoon, the Trojans quickly found themselves in a hole, trailing Michigan State 5–0 at half time. While the Trojans outscored the Spartans in second half, the effort proved to be too little, too late. Freshman midfielder Josiah Peterson and junior attackman Mitch Pawlanta scored the two Trojans’ goals in the game. Senior attackman Mike Kammes assisted on both of Taylor’s goals in the game. Freshman midfielder Luke Borchelt led the team in ground balls against the Spartans, while freshman midfielder Michael Granata finished with three. “We came out slow and just couldn't really get ourselves going,” Pawlanta said. “I think that we were the better team and we let one get away from us that we definitely could have won.” Taking a brief break in between the games, the Trojans rejuvenated themselves for Wayne State. The Trojans got off to a quick start against the Warriors, leading 4–2 at half time. Heading into the final few minutes of the game, the Trojans led 5–4. The Warriors asked to check Borchelt’s stick, which resulted in a one minute penalty for an illegal stick. The Warriors were unable to capitalize on their advantage, giving the Trojans confidence and momentum. Just moments later, the Trojans asked to check the stick of a Wayne State player, resulting in a one minute penalty for an illegal stick. Unlike the Warriors, however, the Trojans capitalized on their man advantage, scoring to make the game 6–4. Despite a late goal from Wayne State, the Trojans escaped with a 6–5 victory. “We kept our heads and played settled, good, team lacrosse,” Peterson said. “Good effort.” Peterson highlighted the Trojans’ offense, scoring three goals and adding an assist. Pawlanta scored one goal and added two assists, both on Peterson goals, against the Warriors. “I love playing with Josiah on the crease because he is so active and controls his stick very well,” Pawlanta said. “He makes it easy to catch and dish because I am always confident when I'm feeding him that it'll find its way to the back of the net.” Borchelt and Peterson paced the Trojans in ground balls against Wayne State, each picking up five ground balls. Kammes tacked on two more assists in the second game. The games marked the final games of Kammes’s career. Kammes chipped in admirably for the Trojans throughout the season and progressed considerably throughout his two year career at Taylor. Kammes is proud of his time with the Trojans and looks forward to the future of Taylor lacrosse. “Today was a great way to finish my lacrosse career at Taylor. I was able to feed all the assists in our first game and a couple more in the second game. It was great to see our team finish strong with a win over Wayne State. This team has been so much fun for the last two years and I hope they continue to grow together without me there. I hope my impact on the team was a step in the right direction to them becoming a varsity sport. I wish then the best of luck moving forward and will support them in a new role as an alumni of the program.” The Trojans finished the 2016 season with a record of 4–4, including 4–2 in GLLL games.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |