The biggest foe for the Wolverine lacrosse team has always been Crespi. The Wolverines triumphed over the Celts in league, winning the last game against Crespi before playoffs and securing the league title and the top seed. However, the Celts surprised the Wolverines when they went head to head in the quarterfinals, beating the Wolverines 9-7 and ending their season and quest for a championship.
“We played pretty well but in the end their goalie was making a few good plays and our shots just didn’t fall and we made a couple of silly mistakes on defense,” defender Andrew Park ’15 said. “I guess that all cost us the game.”
Unlike the previous two matchups, the Wolverines were unable to lead at any point in the game.
The Celts jumped to a quick 3-0 after the first quarter. Brooks Hudgins ’14 and Jack Temko ’14 each scored in the second quarter to take a 3-2 lead. The game wasn’t tied up until the end of the second quarter, with Hudgins tying the score at 4-4.
Two quick goals by Crespi made the score 6-4 at the half. Active efforts by the Wolverine offense were made in the second half, but the Celts maintained their two-goal lead until the end of the game. Crespi went on to lose to Oak Park 10-9 in the semi-finals. Foothill-Santa Ana ended up winning the tournament and the cup.
“I think we definitely could have beat Oak Park if we beat Crespi,” defensive midfielder Alex Corlin ’15 said of the loss. “It’s just always a battle with Crespi. Every single year.”
Despite the loss to Crespi in playoffs, the Wolverines managed to secure the league championship by beating Loyola 11-8 on the Wolverines’ senior night. Harvard-Westlake had the lead throughout the game, but the score was never more than a few goals apart.
The only league loss this year was to Crespi 14-13 March 7.
“We have a more intense rivalry with Crespi, I’d say,” offensive midfielder Drew Corlin ’15 said. “But Loyola was big because if we didn’t win that we wouldn’t win league.”
Crepsi lost to Loyola in a league game during the season, giving the Celts one more loss than the Wolverines, who finish their 2014 campaign with a record of 13-5.
