Lacrosse
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River lax rolls past Westlake, tournament up next
In their final regular season games of 2013, both Rocky River and Westlake were looking to build up some momentum with the tournament draw on the horizon.
When the final gun sounded, all that momentum was clearly in the Pirates’ favor.
Senior middie Eric Sperli scored four goals wirth a pair of assists as Rocky River rolled past the visiting Demons, 12-1, last Friday night at River Stadium.
Rocky River bounced back from a narrow 10-9 loss to Chagrin Falls earlier in the week. The Pirates closed out the regular season at 11-2 and began to look ahead toward their goal...
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O'Brien's late goals get Chagrin Falls past Pirates
After a pair of narrow back-to-back wins, the Rocky River Pirates found themselves in another close encounter Tuesday night. But on this night, they couldn’t quite catch the Tiger by the tail.
Chagrin Falls made the trek out west and made the long trip count. The Tigers withstood a second-half River rally, getting a pair of Tyler O’Brien goals in the final 3:02 for a 10-9 win that spoiled the Pirates’ Senior Night at River Stadium.
Rocky River, the No. 1 team in the Division II Northwest Division, fell to...
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Second-half explosion powers Hudson past River
With one quarter in the books and Rocky River leading 4-1, Hudson went on a 3-0 run early in the second quarter to tie the game. The run took just two and a half minutes...
...and proved to be a preview of things to come.
The visiting Explorers, ranked No. 4 in Ohio, exploded for a 6-0 run late in the third quarter to blow the game open and leave town with an 11-7 win over the No. 16 Pirates Tuesday night at River Stadium. In the process, they also handed the Pirates their first...
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Demons build early lead, hold on to best Bombers
In the first 2:15 of the game, Westlake got goals from juniors Paul Columbro and Adam Sandor to get a leg up on visiting Kenston. While that 2-0 lead didn’t last for long, it still managed to set the tone for the Demon lacrosse team.
Westlake, getting a hat trick from junior Jake Bechtel and a big defensive play from Columbro down the stretch, held on in the final seconds to beat Kenston, 9-8 Saturday afternoon at sun-drenched Reed Field.
“Our goal is to start out fast and get out on top of people,” said Westlake head coach Bill Bongers, whose team moved to 6-3 on the season. “Usually we play better when we’re...
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River moving in right direction in win over Hawks
Scoring goals has not been an easy task of late for the Rocky River boys lacrosse team. But despite scoring just over six goals a game over their last three outings, the Pirates have managed to keep their unbeaten streak intact.
As of now, the Pirates are doing it with defense. And a guy named Sperli.
Friday night, Rocky River got a four-goal performance from senior attacker Eric Sperli and a near-shutout performance from its defense in a 7-1 win over visiting Hawken on Youth Lacrosse Night. The Pirates, ranked No. 13 overall in Ohio, moved to 7-0 on the season in a tough matchup with the Hawks. “We’re moving forward. We’re finding a way to win...
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Defense, big second half pushes Pirates past Bay
In the first 24 minutes of play, Bay was giving Rocky River all it could handle.
The Rockets, off to a 3-1 start to their season, blanked the visiting Pirates in the second quarter. They pulled to within two, 4-2, when Steve Burns found freshman Nick Best for a goal early in the quarter.
But in the third quarter, the tide turned at Memorial Stadium...
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Burns powers Bay lacrosse squad past Orange
The Bay lacrosse team has been scoring in bunches so far this season. On Saturday afternoon, Steve Burns scored in bunches all by himself.
Burns, a senior attacker, scored six goals as the Rockets rolled past visiting Orange, 13-3, at Memorial Stadium. The win pushed Bay’s record to 3-1 heading into Wednesday night’s game with arch rival Rocky River.
Bay has outscored its opponents 47-17 this season, and was coming off a dominating 15-1 win over Cleveland Heights. The Wednesday night game at Memorial Stadium against the Pirates has an 8 p.m. faceoff. There is no junior varsity game scheduled.
Larry was on hand to capture some of the action with his photos and video:
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River lacrosse looking to improve despite 3-0 start
After reaching the Division II state championship game in 2012, the bar has been raised a bit for the Rocky River boys lacrosse program.
The 2013 season has started off well enough for the Pirates, who rattled off wins over Padua, McDowell (Pa.) and North Canton Hoover in their first three games. But according to head coach Steve Anderson, there’s still plenty of room for improvement as the new season moves forward.
“It’s the beginning of the season,” Anderson said after Tuesday night’s 11-6 win over McDowell...
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Rockets get strong start, beat Bruins in lax opener
If Wednesday night was any indication, the Bay lacrosse team is ready to make some significant strides forward in 2013.
The Rockets took a 3-0 lead in the first quarter, then exploded for five goals in the second on their way to an 11-3 win over Padua in their season opener at Memorial Stadium. A hat trick from senior co-captain Steve Burns and two goals each from Henri Adams, Jake Best and Jacob MacMillan supplied enough offense to get the job done.
“It was a little sloppy to start, but we worked...
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Lacrosse: River boys have season to remember
In the days after his team’s 8-6 loss to Columbus DeSales in the Division II state lacrosse title game, Rocky River head coach Steve Anderson looked back at his Pirates’ historic season.
“We were ready to play. It’s a different experience,” said Anderson, who in his third season led River to its first state semifinal win and a berth in the championship game.
“DeSales is a very good team,” Anderson said, whose team trailed 8-2 before rallying in the fourth quarter. “We really didn’t touch the ball much in the third quarter. We finally got things going on the offensive side in the fourth.
“The kids gave it their all, and that’s all you can ask for as a coach,” he added...
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Defense, Tjotjos goals send River to state lax final
With the final minute of the game ticking off the scoreboard clock, all Rocky River head coach Steve Anderson could do was watch.
His Pirates were leading University School, 8-7, in the Division II state lacrosse semifinals. An illegal procedure call had given the Preppers the ball moments earlier, and now it was up to the River defense to get the job done.
“Come on defense. Come on...,” Anderson said to himself as goalie Aaron Blossey and the River defense deflected a USchool shot with 24 seconds left with the Preppers a man up. Then with 10 seconds left, the Pirates recovered a fumbled ball and sent it flying down field...
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River lax returns to Elite Eight with win over Bay
Through one quarter of play, the Bay boys lacrosse team was holding its own against Rocky River. The Rockets’ defense was holding as the Pirates held a slim 2-0 lead after the first 12 minutes.
But with River already having a 14-3 shot advantage, the bottom fell out quickly for Bay.
The Pirates, the number one team in the Division II Northwest Division, scored five unassisted goals in the second quarter and advanced to the Elite Eight with a 14-4 win Wednesday night. Rocky River has now advanced...
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Last-minute goal rallies 'Riders past Rocky River
In the midst of its toughest stretch of games so far this season, Rocky River head coach Steve Anderson knew his Pirates would be facing a number of challenges.
After an exhilarating 7-6 win Saturday afternoon at St. Edward, Anderson’s Pirates had faced the first challenge head on and came out on top. Tuesday night, an early 4-1 deficit against visiting Kent Roosevelt had River in unfamiliar territory.
Even more challenges lied ahead...
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Big second quarter gets St. Edward past Demons
With the final seconds of the first quarter ticking away, Westlake’s Adam Sandor took a pass from Jake Bechtel and zipped the ball past St. Edward goalie Drew Simpson.
That gave the Demons a 3-2 lead over the Eagles, a lead that proved to be short-lived. The visitors exploded for eight goals in the second quarter and fought off a second-half rally by the Demons for a 17-10 win Friday night at Read Field.
It was just the third loss of the season for the young Demons, who fell to 6-3...
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Rebuild? Tone set as River boys lacrosse reloads
For some programs, losing a large senior class can mean a rebuilding program is right around the corner.
That doesn’t seem to be the case this season for the Rocky River boys lacrosse team.
The Pirates, who advanced to the Division II Final Four last season, are off to a solid 6-1 start under third-year head coach Steve Anderson. This week, they knocked off Avon Lake, 13-2, and began preparing for a challenging stretch of games over the next week. On Saturday afternoon...
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Video: Pirates vs Tigers women's lacrosse
Rocky River Lady Pirates took on the visiting Chagrin Falls Lady Tigers in varsity women\'s lacrosse.
Larry stopped by to catch some first half action.
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Big first quarter leads River lax to win over Bay
Last Saturday, the Rocky River boys lacrosse team had a four-goal lead turn into a 6-5 loss to St. Francis DeSales. On Tuesday night, head coach Steve Anderson was anxious to see how his team would bounce back against visiting Bay.
It didn’t take long for Anderson to find out.
The Pirates outshot the Rockets, 14-1, in the first quarter on their way to a 5-0 lead. They withstood two Bay rallies and came away with a 13-7 win to move to 4-1...
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Video: Mags vs Hawken women's lacrosse
The Magnificat Blue Streaks hosted the women from Hawken for a varsity lacrosse match at Tri-City Park.
Larry got some first half photo and video action.
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