Flames' trip to Texas ended well, setting tone for offseason
5/13/2021 12:00:00 AM | Men's Lacrosse
Like the rest of the sporting world, Liberty University's men's lacrosse team dealt with its share of adversity over the past year, having to cancel all but six games of its 2020 season in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic before Head Coach Kyle McQuillan was forced to redo the 2021 schedule from scratch in the aftermath.
But the Flames rose to the occasion and made the best of the situation this spring, winning the inaugural Atlantic Lacrosse Conference (ALC) Championship tournament, which they hosted May 1-2 at the Liberty Lacrosse Fields, and advanced to the May 12-14 MCLA National Invitational in Round Rock, Texas.
After being eliminated in the quarterfinal round, 10-7 by eventual champion Brigham Young University, Liberty, seeded third out of the East, rallied from an 11-3 halftime deficit in the May 13 consolation game against Utah Valley, the No. 4 seed out of the West, to win 14-13 in overtime.
"There were a lot of emotions going into that day, coming off a loss to BYU and trying to rally the guys," said Flames Head Coach Kyle McQuillan, who experimented with his lineup to give players experience in the national spotlight. "With the sheer amount of turnover we are facing and the number of recruits we'll have coming in, it was an opportunity for us to make some changes."
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| Britton netted four goals and distributed four assists in the Flames' consolation final win over Utah Valley. |
Utah Valley, which like BYU is a predominantly Morman university, opened a 6-1 advantage by the end of the first quarter and still led 12-6 at end of the third before the Flames outscored the Wolverines, 7-1, in the fourth quarter and won with a goal on their first possession in sudden-death overtime.
"There was a lot of frustration at halftime, as things were breaking UVU's way," McQuillan said. "But in the end, that game was a fun way to finish off the season on a bit of a high note for next year. It was exciting."
Liberty made a steady fourth-quarter resurgence, turning the tables on Utah Valley with a persistent attack. Freshman goalie Eric Warnstrom made eight saves and only allowed two goals in the second half while senior faceoff specialist Ethan Bohannan won seven of 13 faceoffs, mostly in the fourth quarter, giving the Flames an opportunity to get back into the game.
"We got quick goals early in possessions and faceoff wins," McQuillan said. "It wasn't really a flurry of goals all at once, but a slow and steady comeback. Slowly but surely, the guys dug themselves out of the hole as they didn't want to end the year on a loss."
Senior attack Caleb Britton paced the Flames with four goals and four assists while freshman midfielder Keaton Mohs added four goals — including the game-winner in overtime — and three assists.
"Keaton had a lot of clutch goals late and won four faceoffs out of five chances," McQuillan said.
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| Sophomore attack Mark Rolewicz scored the tying goal against the Wolverines with 25 seconds left in regulation. |
Senior middie Carter Elliott contributed four goals and freshman middie Ryan Merbach and sophomore attack Mark Rolewicz both netted one, with Rolewicz's tying the contest in the final 25 seconds of regulation.
McQuillan is hopeful that the Flames can return to Texas next May to contend for their first MCLA Division I national championship. He and his staff have a busy summer in store with their recruiting efforts, also affected by the pandemic, still underway for the fall semester.
"COVID has changed how we recruit and the timeline for our recruiting," McQuillan said. "It has definitely limited our ability to know and learn what kids are like, with a lot less film to watch. We might have some last-minute guys that we are hoping to add. There is a big need for us now on the defensive side of the ball, graduating as many defenders as we did."
The Flames have seven commitments to date, including two from Minnesota, two from Michigan, and two from Virginia. Similar to last year, players have the option for an additional year of eligibility from the MCLA since no official national championship was played, but McQuillan doesn't expect as many players to take advantage of that to return this fall.
"Our recruiting class has some strong candidates with great potential to have an effect on the team pretty early," McQuillan said. "We will still continue to have our open tryout in early September and know we'll have a few spots available."
Liberty will hold their Flames Futures Lacrosse Camp for boys ages 9-18 from July 12-15, followed by the Liberty Mountain Showdown, a U18 and U16 summer tournament from July 17-18 at the Liberty Lacrosse Fields. They will then hold a Flames Futures Recruiting Showcase on Aug. 21 before starting up preseason conditioning for the fall semester.
By Ted Allen/Staff Writer
The Flames united in prayer after winning the inaugural ALC Championship final over Clemson.