We apologize for the delay in releasing the Sunday Stroll for you to browse with your Sunday morning coffee.  In future weeks, The Stroll should be fresh from cyberspace no later then 10am Sunday morning as most games are completed by Saturday night.  Being that this was the opening week of play here in the WHSBLA, all three local Invitationals included games on Sunday, so we felt it best to hold off on releasing this week’s edition until Sunday evening… so maybe you can enjoy Monday morning with your favorite cup of joe…besides some of you get to sleep in… unless you’re a sophomore… that’s right, its WASL week!

 

The Division I Stroll…

 

  • Eight Division I teams began play this weekend with five competing in the 4th annual Northwest Invitational.  Tahoma opened as part of a jamboree in Oregon, while  Seattle Prep took part in the 2nd annual Ketari Invitational and Northshore started with a non-league contest versus Division II rival, Snohomish.

 

  • The Northwest Invitational brought together its biggest field yet (13) including teams from Oregon, Idaho, Utah, Nevada and Tennessee.  Washington teams finished with an overall record of 7-4 as Bainbridge and Mercer Island each went 2-0, Bellevue and Issaquah each split 1-1 and Skyline finished 1-2.  The top local scorer in the event was Issaquah senior midfielder, Jordan Goldstein who scored 10 goals in just two games; four in a win over Montgomery Bell Academy (Tennessee) and six in loss to Lincoln (Oregon).

 

  • LaxPower lists five WHSBLA Division I teams in the Western Region’s Top 100.  The Western Region includes Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Utah, Nevada, California, Arizona and Colorado.

 

  • Does any team have more sets of brothers then the Curtis Vikings?  A look at their roster shows the Carrs, Cavanaughs, Deans and Moodys. 

 

  • Best match-ups of the upcoming week::
    • 3/19  Curtis @ Northshore –  Brothers galore… Carrs vs Wismans
    • 3/17  Puyallup @ Vashon – Could decide last playoff spots in May
    • 3/18  Skyline @ Mercer Island –  Can Spartans pull upset 2 years in a row?

 

The D2 Stroll…

 

·        21 of 28 Division II teams began playing this weekend.

 

  • Four Division II teams actually opened league play this weekend as Mukilteo defeated San Juan and King’s Way took down Port Angeles.

 

  • The Ketari Invitational was hosted by Eastside Catholic and included six Jesuit schools from the Northwest: Seattle Prep, Eastside Catholic, Tacoma (Bellarmine Prep) from local areas, Gonzaga Prep from Spokane, Bishop Kelly from Idaho and Portland Jesuit from Oregon.  The Jamboree event took place from Friday through Sunday with most games taking place at the brand new Eastside Catholic High School campus in the city of Sammamish. 

 

  • The 2nd annual Cavalier Invitational took place up north in Lynden.  Most of the weekend was wet, cold and snowy!  Saturday showcased ten teams playing two games each; the surviving eight teams were then seeded into a single elimination tournament on Sunday.  The event ended with a nice and windy, but warm, dry championship game.

 

Quarterfinals:                                                        Semifinals:                                                                             Finals:   

#1 Overlake vs #8 Skagit Valley                        #1 Overlake vs #5 Stadium                                                 #1 Overlake vs #3 Bainbridge JV

#2 Lake Tapps vs #7 Sammamish                      #2 Lake Tapps vs #3 Bainbridge JV

#3 Bainbridge JV vs #6 Wenatchee

#4 Nathan Hale vs #5 Stadium

 

Overlake took the Cavalier Invitational for the second year in a row with dominating performances all weekend.  Senior midfielder and preseason

1st Team, All-Division II, George Dolack was named tournament MVP.  "He was patient, calm, and knew when to attack and when to slow it down.

 He is a very smart player.  It also doesn't hurt that he shoots with pinpoint accuracy!" said an opposing coach. 

 

The tournament had a good feel to it as each team had the same goals in mind: shake off the rust off, play a lot of greenhorns and get the kids acclimated to

the speed of the game.  At one point there were at least 350 youth, jv and varsity lacrosse players on the field.  Quite a site to see in Lynden, Washington!

 

  • Lynnwood and Stanwood joined Tahoma (Division I) in Oregon for the weekend, while Roosevelt and Three Rivers opened with non-league contests.

 

  • Best match-ups of the upcoming week::
    • 3/17  Redmond @ Roosevelt – DII favorite vs the former DI, plenty of green and gold
    • 3/17  Selah @ Three Rivers – First official WHSBLA game played east of the mountains
    • 3/18  Whatcom @ Skagit Valley – Warriors face former coach, Greg Hill and the new Flyers

 

 

Lacrosse The Country…

 

  • For those craving the identity of the two WHSBLA alumns in last week’s picture…

#15 Alex Bates, San Diego St. from Issaquah

#40 JT Tungsvik, Arizona from Puyallup

 

  • In case you missed it, take a peek back at page 16 of Lacrosse Magazine’s February issue.  You should find a picture of Seattle Prep alumn and current Cornell midfielder, Shane O’Neill.

 

 

  • On Wednesday, March 18th, the Bowdoin Polar Bears host the St. Lawrence Saints in a NCAA Division III match-up meaning former Mercer Island star, Ben York will go against former Garfield All-American, Caldwell Rohrbach!

 

 

Lacrosse Four Thought…

Who will be the first team to pull an upset this year?

What team impressed you the most this weekend?

Where does Washington stack up nationally compared to other states?

Why are fans and readers of The Sunday Stroll afraid to send us their thoughts?

 

Feed us your thoughts.  We’ll include the best comments/quotes in next week’s Sunday Stroll. 

Speak your mind concerning anything you have read or any ideas you might have for future stories.               

EMAIL: TheSundayStroll@gmail.com

 

Fans Sound Off…

(The best comments from the past week)

 

“One note on Klahowya - Cody Hertenstein is playing baseball this year.” – Rob Hawley

 

“Peter Mueller is mistakenly listed as playing for Mukilteo.  He did in fact play for Mukilteo last season, but is actually playing for Snohomish this year.  Thought you’d like to make the correction.” –Anonymous Division II Coach

 

Thanks to the readers for keeping us honest!