La Costa Canyon Mavericks

There are still a good two months before the start of the 2013 lacrosse season, but that doesn’t mean there is no lacrosse being played. In warm locations like California, Arizona and Texas, winter leagues are in full swingAnd in California in particular, we’ve already seen a legitimate contender for goal of the year, as you can see in the video above. The player notching the all-time great full field fling above is Carlsbad (Cal.) La Costa Canyon High goalie Bryan Cooper. With his squad playing in the annual Adrenaline Challenge in Del Mar, Cal., Cooper decided to forego traditional clearing patterns to chuck the ball down the field. The tactic worked perfectly, with the ball flying down the field over everyone, including the opposing goal, who was working upfield to quarterback his defense for an oncoming attack … and went right into the net. It was almost as if he was playing H-O-R-S-E and called a “no bounce” shot.
As one would expect, every player with a long stick immediately scrambled back to celebrate with Cooper, all while La Costa’s unidentified Adrenaline foes stood around in relative disbelief.
It would be one heck of an anomaly for Cooper to score another goal later in his career, so he deserved all the attention and plaudits he received. If he does score again, he’ll deserve them then, too. Anyone who can launch a ball that far and that accurately deserves plenty of credit. Heck, even getting the ball near the goal on a pass from the other crease would be a pretty impressive accomplishment.
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To watch the video click here http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/highschool-prep-rally/full-field-shot-lacrosse-goalie-could-already-top-193320201.html

This Wednesday, September 26th at 3pm we will be holding a meeting for all interested lacrosse players in the stadium. Please be on time and bring something to write with. We will be going over important dates, code of conduct, and player information forms. I look forward to meeting all the new players, as well as, welcoming back returning players.

SoCal: So Good
The La Costa Canyon (Calif.) boys’ and girls’ high school teams are the best in the West. The Mavericks headline the Lacrosse Magazine 18-page section devoted to wrapping up the 2012 prep season.

June 12, 2012 6:30 am • North County Times

Selections made by North County Times’ prep writers unless noted.

BOYS LACROSSE

First Team

Name,School;Yr.

Caleb Pryle, Rancho Bernardo;Jr.

Aiden Moran, La Costa Canyon;Sr.

Lucas Gradinger, Torrey Pines;Jr.

Sean Doyle, Torrey Pines;Sr.

Brendan Gaughan, La Costa Canyon;Sr.

Andrew Perkins, Torrey Pines;Sr.

Jack Yeatman, Rancho Bernardo;Sr.

Aaron Loy, La Costa Canyon;Jr.

Chris Summers, Westview;Sr.

Tom Riis, La Costa Canyon;Sr.

Bryan Cooper, La Costa Canyon;Jr.

Player of the year

Brendan Gaughan, La Costa Canyon

Coach of the year

Jesse Foss, La Costa Canyon

May 26, 2012 8:35 pm • By GREG BALL For the North County Times

RANCHO PENASQUITOS -- In pressure situations, La Costa Canyon High boys lacrosse coach Jesse Foss always knows who his go-to guy is.

With two overtime goals this season already on his resume, junior attack Aaron Loy was a natural choice to take the biggest shot Saturday. And once again, he came through in the clutch.

Loy’s goal with 20 seconds left in overtime lifted the Mavericks to an 8-7 victory over defending champion Torrey Pines in the CIF San Diego Section Division I final at Westview High, giving LCC its third win this season over its biggest rival and its fifth section title in seven years.

“We (simulate) things like this in practice all the time, where we do three-minute games where we’re down by two or three goals, so our kids are used to those situations and how to stay composed,” Foss said.

“Once we got to the overtime period, we told Aaron that we were going to set him up. We said ’We’re going to get you your third overtime goal of the season,’ and he said ‘Alright.’ He ran down, read the play perfectly and got the shot we wanted. It worked out great.”

Loy capped an improbable comeback after LCC’s chances appeared to fade late in regulation. The teams were tied at 3 entering the fourth quarter, but Torrey Pines quickly took control. Bennett Shafer put the second-seeded Falcons (17-5) ahead a little more than a minute into the frame, and then Andrew Perkins and Lucas Gradinger each found the back of the net in a 90-second span for a 6-3 lead. The momentum clearly belonged to Torrey Pines.

Top-seeded La Costa Canyon (22-1) didn’t wilt, though. The Mavericks’ Brendan Gaughan scored on a bullet to the low right corner of the cage with 4 minutes, 19 seconds left, and Tom Riis won the ensuing faceoff and sprinted straight toward the goal for a score that got LCC within striking distance.

Torrey Pines extended its lead to 7-5 on an acrobatic diving goal from Perkins with 1:06 to play, but Riis delivered again with a goal at the 41-second mark and another with 14 seconds left to force overtime.

In the overtime period, Torrey Pines took possession early and fired three shots at LCC goalie Bryan Cooper, who stopped each one. After the third of those saves, the Mavericks took the ball downfield, got it into Loy’s stick as he raced up the left half of the field, and their biggest clutch performer found the opening he needed.

“It’s really indescribable -- it’s not a normal goal, but it’s a team goal,” Loy said as his teammates celebrated in the distance. “It was definitely tough to stay focused and not get down when we were behind, but we have faith in each other, and we know that if our defense gets the ball back, our offense will, in turn, score goals.”

Torrey Pines had won three of its four previous meetings with La Costa Canyon in section championship games, and has won four championships overall, including last year’s.

The Falcons didn’t have enough Saturday to counter one last push from the Mavericks.

“We were ahead by three and let them back in, so it makes it tough to swallow,” Falcons coach Jono Zissi said. “Somebody was going to lose by a goal, and they had all the momentum going into overtime.”

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