Lacrosse opens spring season with three wins

BY WENDI REARDON PRICE
Clarkston News Sports Writer
Within the first minute the Clarkston Boys Varsity Lacrosse team opened their 2021 season with a statement – they were ready.
Junior Evan McClorey scored the first goal against Plymouth 25 seconds into the game, last Wednesday, off an assist from senior Jack Gurn.
McClorey scored again with 5:30 remaining in the first quarter to put the score, 2-0. In the next five minutes Gurn scored on one goal and junior Ryan Berry scored two to close the period, 5-0.
The Wolves went on to finish their home opener with a 14-4 win.

Sophomore Ryan Phyle runs closer to Plymouth’s net. Photo by Wendi Reardon Price

“I am excited for them,” said Brian Kaminskas, head coach. “In a good way, we made a ton of mistakes. But, we made a ton of mistakes because these guys were just running up and down the field and having a good time. We were making mistakes because we were moving too fast. I will take that every day just to see them have as much fun as they had that was a win enough.”
McClorey finished the game with four goals. Senior Sam Lightfoot had three goals and two assists. Gurn had two goals and one assist. Senior Hayden Arnold and senior Braedyn Callahan each had one goal and one assist. Sophomore Blake Berry had one goal.
Kaminskas added Gurn and sophomore Gavin Pate had a good night.
“They looked really good,” he said, adding the whole team looked good considering they didn’t have a 2020 spring season.
Athletes across the state didn’t have a spring season last year due to the COVID-pandemic. The team stuck together through Zoom calls. They got together when they were given the okay for activity.
“They have been working from June on,” Kaminskas said. “If it was safe to go out and play wearing masks, they were doing it. I think it showed. We are in the same boat as everyone else. You do what you can.”
The Wolves defeated Midland on Friday, 14-8.
“I was extremely impressed with the way they showed up – they showed up to play,” said Kaminskas. “Midland is a good team and they were all business.”
Lightfoot had four goals. Gurn had two goals and four assists. Senior Harry Skinner had two goals and two assists and McClorey had two goals and one assist. Callahan had one goal and one assist.
Blake Berry, Arnold and Zaiden Green had one goal each. Ryan Berry had one assist.
The Wolves won their OAA game against Oxford on Saturday, 15-1. The first quarter closed with both teams tied at zero. In the next 12 minutes, Clarkston scored five goals to grab the lead. They scored another five goals during the third quarter to put the score 10-1.
“At the end of the day, we came alive and did what we were supposed to do,” said Kaminskas. “It’s three games in a week which is always difficult. It was a two hour drive to Midland. You put those back to back, it’s going to be difficult on them.”
The Wolves host Romeo on Thursday. JV plays at 5:30 p.m., varsity follows.
“It should be a good week,” said Kaminskas. “We have a little bit of a rest. We can fix a lot of things. We have some time to review and fix a few issues we had in games. We have time to prepare – physically and mentally.”
They head to Bloomfield Hills on Tuesday, April 20. JV plays at 5:30 p.m., varsity follows.

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