For the last four seasons, Olympus coach Nick Merrell has seen his boys lacrosse team end its season — at least in his mind — prematurely, as the Titans have had successful years but have fallen to Park City before they could win a championship.
He is doing everything he can to try to prevent that from occurring this season. He started by creating the most difficult schedule and, Friday night, that meant inviting 6A’s top-ranked team, Skyridge, to Mark Manning Field.
The Titans took a step forward, as Kai Rossi scored three goals and Olympus found the net six times in the final period to roll to a 16-8 victory over the previously undefeated Falcons.
Olympus improved to 4-1 overall and, after earning two wins last week on a Southern California road trip, Merrell believes the Titans are finding their groove.
He’ll know more next week when they travel to play at 4A contenders Juan Diego and Judge Memorial.
“We want to play the best to be the best,” he said. “We want to play fast and we want to show some poise.”
The Titans led almost literally the entire game, starting when Jacob Buxton scored less than 90 seconds in, and Ben Stohlton made it 2-0 only 12 seconds later.
“It’s a game of momentum,” Merrell said. “We want to score a lot when we have it, and you saw how other teams do it, too.”
Skyridge came in with a 5-0 mark and was averaging 12.5 goals per game, which also included some California opponents.
The Falcons trailed 7-2 at halftime Friday but rallied with a five-goal surge in the third period to narrow the margin. However, as soon as they got as close as 10-7, Olympus pulled a reversal and put the game away.
Rossi and William Southwick rushed the Skyridge net twice in a four-minute span to eventually build a nine-goal margin, and the Falcons tasted defeat for the first time.
“They did it to us (score quickly) in the third quarter, and then we returned the favor,” Merrell said. “When you have momentum, you have to take advantage of it, and that’s how to get success.”
Olympus was also helped by goalkeeper Andrew Borden, who turned away several shots when Skyridge pressured him. For much of the game, though, the ball was at the other end of the Titans’ turf field and he could rest easy until it mattered.
“It’s all about where you want to be at the end,” Merrell said. “Park City has ended our season too many times, and we want to be ready for them.”
That region game is just over a month away – April 28. In between, the Titans also have other serious matchups, and it’s also likely there will be postseason battles.