BOYS LACROSSE REGIONALS: Brother Rice continues mastery, downs Clarkston for regional crown
BY DAN STICKRADT
SENIOR EDITOR
dan.stickradt@northoaklandsports.com
Twitter: @LocalSportsFans
WEST BLOOMFIELD — Trying to figure out how to beat Birmingham Brother Rice in boys lacrosse is like trying to understand the full wisdom of God.
Right now, at least for Michigan-based teams, it seems downright impossible.
Brother Rice, the top-ranked team in both Division 1 and the Super 25, has not lost to another Michigan school since 2002. The Warriors continued its mastery of in-state teams Friday at West Bloomfield, topping Clarkston 19-4 in a Division 1 regional final.
“We always talk about not taking anything for granted,” admitted veteran Brother Rice coach Rob Ambrose. “All of these teams work very hard and a lot of these teams are getting better. Lacrosse is such a game of momentum and I thought we gained a lot of momentum (in the second quarter). We were able to really get going.”
Scoring at will is more like it.
Brother Rice, which has won 14 of the past 16 state titles combining the MHSSA sponsored tournaments, which began in 2005, and the old coaches association state tournaments, advances to the state semifinals June 6 at Novi Detroit Catholic Central against the winner of the Brighton-Birmingham Unified regional final.
The Warriors have not lost in a regional game since 1994, the year before Ambrose’s arrival, giving them 17 straight regional crowns and Final Four appearances.
“Ever since 1995 we have been able to get here (to the state semifinals) and now we are going after (15 of 17 state titles),” said Ambrose, whose team is a heavy favorite to repeat.
Like clockwork, Brother Rice scored a goal only one minute into the contest and led 4-0 only 5:14 into the game. Clarkston, meanwhile, crossed midfield only once during that span.
Riley Kennedy scored the first and third goals and Jerry Dietz tallied in the first 4:32 before Clarkston knew what even hit them. Henry Nelson upped the ante to 4-0 with 6:46 still to play in the opening quarter.
Fifth-ranked Clarkston (16-3-0) was able to cut the deficit down to 4-1 and 6-2 midway through the second quarter before the floodgates opened.
Brother Rice outscored Clarkston 5-1 down the stretch of the second frame for an 11-3 halftime lead. The Warriors extended their advantage to 16-4 by the end of the third quarter and began pulling their starters midway through the fourth quarter.
Nelson finished with a six-goal and one assist explosion to lead Brother Rice, which had nine different players reach the scoring column. Kennedy added four goals and two assists, Jason Alessi added two goals and three assists and Will Hogan finished with a pair of goals for the Warriors.
Andy Hebden, Serio Perkovic, James Crowe, Dietz and Sloane Walsh all had single goals for Brother Rice, which boasts five players headed to Division I colleges to extend their playing careers.
The Warriors improved to 18-2-0 — their only losses this season are to Culver (Ind.) Military Academy and Hamburg (N.Y) High school just outside of Buffalo — and are seeking their 15th state title.
“That’s always the goal,” said Ambrose, whose team reached as high as 21st nationally this season. “I thought we played well overall. Our goalkeeper (Quarton Kiernan) had a very good game. You have mixed feelings when your goalie plays well. (They) broke through our defense a little bit. But he stepped up and had a very good game.”
It marked the second year in a row that Brother Rice defeated Clarkston in the regional finals, including an 18-5 decision last season. The Wolves, and up-and-coming program less than a decade old, is 34-5 over the past two years.
“We actually played better tonight against Rice than we did last year,” offered Clarkston coach Brian Kaminskas. “We had our chances, but they are very good and we knew that coming into tonight.”
Brother Rice outshot Clarkston by a 34-23 margin, including 31-17 with shots directly on goal. The Wolves were frustrated by the play of Kiernan, who finished with 13 saves. Clarkston also misfired on multiple close-range shots which kept them from clawing back into the game.
“It was just one of those nights where the shots that we normally score on — we couldn’t find the net,” said Kaminskas. “You have to play a (perfect) game against a team like Rice and we didn’t.
“But I’m proud of these guys. We kept some of them as freshmen and sophomores (on varsity) and we went from an average team that finished around five hundred to a team that was ranked as high as fifth in the state,” continued Kaminskas. “We were sixth last season and got up to fifth this year. That’s a credit to the seniors on this team that worked so hard to make us the team we are today.”
Jordan Kincaid scored twice and both Travis Craft and Kevin O’Grady had single tallies for Clarkston. All four of the Wolves’ goals were unassisted.
Adam Gohl made 12 saves for Clarkston, which never even made the regional finals until the 2011 and 2012 seasons.
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[…] Brother Rice 19, Clarkston 4. I was at this game, and Clarkston parents were heckling Brother Rice for running up the score. If the Warriors had wanted to, they would have scored 30, so knock off the complaining. […]