Ponderosa won last season’s Class 4A boys lacrosse championship. (Tim Visser/TimVisserPhotography.com)
It’s been some 10 months since Ponderosa’s boys lacrosse team took the state by storm on its way to the Class 4A state championship.
The Mustangs walked out of Sports Authority Field at Mile High last May with its first title in the sport after dethroning defending state champion Wheat Ridge 13-11. So it’s understandable that the squad is eager to get the 2015 season rolling and begin the process of pursuing a second championship.
Mother Nature has had other ideas. A rash of snowstorms over the past week-plus hasn’t made life easy for the Mustangs, who have been unable to head outdoors since spring practice officially began Feb. 23.
“It’s a little frustrating, but we can’t really hang our heads on it,” Mustangs senior Derik Mango said. “We’ve got to keep moving forward. Every other team in the state is going through the same thing, which makes it a little better for us.”
When the preseason poll was released on Monday, the Mustangs opened at No. 1 in 4A.
The 2015 opener is slated for Saturday afternoon against Thompson Valley, thus beginning the team’s title defense. That can be easier said than done though – look no further than Wheat Ridge, which fell just shy of the same goal a year ago.
“It’s easier to hunt than to be hunted,” Ponderosa coach Pat Tierney said. “But that’s not a bad position to be in either. That will challenge us all season.”
Derik Mango (12) returns for Ponderosa. (Tim Visser/TimVisserPhotography.com)
While Ponderosa does return a pair of first-team all-state talents in Mango, a senior attacker, and senior midfielder Jack Griffin, the supporting cast has changed somewhat. The Mustangs graduated 13 seniors off of its title-winning team, meaning some younger players will have to make the transition quickly in order to fill those shoes.
“It’s going to be a team-chemistry thing,” said Griffin, who led the team 57 goals and 38 assists a year ago. “Last year we had a lot of guys who had playing with each other for a couple of years. Now we’re a lot younger as a team and it’s going to be tougher. I know we’ve really been pushing these younger guys to get better.”
Mango was third on the team with 43 goals, but Blake Bruner’s 56 goals and 35 assists will be missed. So too will be the presence of goalie Jacob Ochs, a second-team all-state selection.
Senior Austin Bullock leads a defense looking to take some pressure off junior Drew Martin, who picked up a pair of victories between the pipes last season.
“He’s coming along. He’s still learning the position and growing in his understanding of what his role is,” Tierney said of Martin. “It’s a tough position to play because you’ve got to be pretty tough physically and then you’ve got to be pretty tough mentally to not let yourself get taken out of the game.”
Mango said it’s up to the returning players to help the younger talent develop in the early part of the season. One thing working in the team’s favor: Having already won a state title, the returning players know the amount of work it will take to get back there.
“There’s not a feeling quite like it. I know everybody who was on that team last year wants it again,” Griffin said. “Everyone who wasn’t on that team wants to know what it’s like. I think that will keep everyone focused.”
That said, Tierney realizes that the Mustangs can’t afford to simply sit back and rest on the laurels of being a state champion.
“It’s definitely a great feeling to be able to put a trophy in the display case and hang a banner in the gym,” he said. “But like we told the kids last season and already started to tell them this season: I think we have good coaches who are helping to steer the kids, but they are the ones who ultimately decide how they play and execute and if they can do that again.”
In Class 5A, Regis Jesuit will be looking to claim a second consecutive championship after downing Cherry Creek 14-7 in the 2014 title game. The Raiders return a pair of all-state selections in Matt Soran and Ben Bechter.
Wheat Ridge makes the move to the 5A classification this spring as well.
Boys lacrosse preview
Class 5A
- Defending state champion: Regis Jesuit
- Regular season begins: March 5
- Playoffs begin: May 7
- State championship: May 15, Sports Authority Field at Mile High in Denver
- Returning all-state players: Ben Bechter, Sr., Regis Jesuit (2nd team); Zach Hall, Soph., Wheat Ridge (2nd); Mike Morean, Sr., Cherry Creek (2nd); Tanner Pauley, Sr., Dakota Ridge (2nd); Kyle Pless, Sr., Mountain Vista (2nd); Matt Soran, Sr., Regis Jesuit (1st); Max Tuttle, Sr., Castle View (1st).
Class 4A
- Defending state champion: Ponderosa
- Regular season begins: March 5
- Playoffs begin: May 6
- State championship: May 15, Sports Authority Field at Mile High in Denver
- Returning all-state players: Drew Chesire, Jr., St. Mary’s (2nd team); Clayton Davis, Sr., Battle Mountain (2nd); Ryan Fitzgerald, Sr., Aspen (2nd); Jack Griffin, Sr., Ponderosa (1st); Willy Gunn, Sr., Steamboat Springs (2nd); Derik Mango, Sr., Ponderosa (1st); Mitch Reddish, Sr., Cheyenne Mountain (1st); Ryan Russell, Sr., Valor Christian (2nd); Jake Thornally, Jr., Air Academy (2nd); Tyler Tick, Sr., Aspen (1st).