Beaverton, OR – Trailing 8-5 with 6:50 left in the third quarter and having just watched #3 Chapman go on a four-goal run over the course of three and a half minutes, the #2 ranked Colorado State Rams took a timeout, regrouped and proceeded to score the final five goals of the game to secure an impressive 10-8 victory in the final game of the Southridge Lacrosse Classic. The Rams had led for most of the contest up until Chapman’s big third-quarter run, but managed to turn the momentum around with the help of three goals by junior Alex Devlin (Langley HS / Langley, VA) over the last 17 minutes of the game. Devlin scored three of the game's final four goals to help CSU sweep the weekend’s contests against two ranked opponents.
After a nip and tuck first half that ended deadlocked at 4 goals each, CSU scored early in the third period as sophomore Kacy Carter (Rock Canyon HS / Castle Rock, CO) got the second of his three tallies on a feed from sophomore Sean Smith (Amherst HS / Amherst, NY). But Chapman seized control of the game for the better part of the period, going on an explosive four-goal run to take a three-goal lead with 3:00 left in the third. Finally, CSU’s offense clicked into high gear and two goals only 37 seconds apart by senior Greyson Konkel (Regis Jesuit HS / Aurora, CO) and Devlin got the Rams within one heading into the fourth.
The final stanza was all Colorado State as Devlin and Carter both finished their hat-tricks and the CSU defense held Chapman’s prolific offense scoreless over the final 21:50 of the game. Senior defender Patrick Sullivan (Heritage HS / Littleton, CO) was outstanding, shutting out Chapman’s Andrew Clayton and juniors Hayden Porter (Heritage HS / Littleton, CO) and Tyler Zabor (Rock Canyon HS / Highlands Ranch, CO) did their part down low as well. Through four games, CSU's defense has surrendered only 18 total goals.
Chapman’s 8-5 lead was the biggest and only deficit the Rams have faced this season after three relatively easy victories up to this point. The Panthers were great in unsettled situations and off the ground, making CSU pay for mistakes in the middle of the field. Statistically, the teams were virtually even in almost all categories with the Rams enjoying a slight edge facing off, nabbing 13 of 22 total draws.
Madison Fiore led the charge for Chapman with four goals while junior Austin Fisher (Rock Canyon HS / Highlands Ranch, CO) had a four point effort as well for CSU with two goals and two assists. Besides Carter and Devlin’s three-goal outputs, the only other multi-point scorer for CSU was Konkel with a goal and an assist. No one besides Fiore on Chapman registered more than one point. CSU’s Jack Regan (Sunset HS / Beaverton, OR) had a nice first half for the Rams in goal, tallying six saves before yielding to fellow sophomore Koltin Fatzinger (Wheat Ridge HS / Thornton, CO), who made three saves in his half of work. Chapman’s Matt Sathrum was solid, making 10 saves in a full 60 minute effort.
Colorado State (4-0 overall) takes a break from MCLA competition next week as they travel south to Colorado Springs to take on NCAA Division III and long-time rival Colorado College on Saturday afternoon. The Rams and Tigers have split the past two match-ups and CC is coming off an emphatic 11-4 victory over the University of Colorado on Saturday. Chapman falls to 4-2 and will be back at it next weekend against Boston College and UCLA.