Last Friday, the Boys’ Varsity Lacrosse team finished the regular season by hosting the Matadors from Miramonte.  Many of the Seniors from both teams have a long history of playing lacrosse together, which elevated the stakes and level of tension on the field and in the stands. 

The Dons came out of the starting gates firing on all cylinders. Within the first 9 minutes of play, Owen Estee had already scored a hat trick and the Olson twins (Cooper and Dylan) had each put one between the pipes. The Dons Defense seemed equally cohesive making it difficult for the Mats to get great looks at the cage and score. The game continued similarly for much of the second half and by Halftime, the Dons commanded a solid 10-6 lead. While both teams fought extremely hard for every pass, ground ball, score and to create turnovers, it was clear that the Mats were no match for the Don’s depth of skill on both sides of the field. 

However, skill and determination aren’t the only ingredients for a successful outcome and this came into play a bit before halftime. With just under 9 minutes and 3 minutes to play in the second quarter, Miramonte coach Jake Acevedo called for a stick check on Dons FOGO Ben Foox. These highly unusual, but legal, requests compelled the refs to examine Foox’s stick for compliance and resulted in (2) 2-minute, non-releasable penalties; and by halftime, Foox was in foul trouble. Three minutes into the second half, Foox was called for another penalty, which disqualified him from play, rendering the Dons without their star FOGO and placing them at a huge disadvantage. Acavedo’s tactic worked and the momentum quickly shifted Miramonte’s way.

The second half saw the Dons losing most faceoffs, playing on their heels, and play was largely relegated to our Defensive end of the field. The Mats outscored the Dons 7 to 5 in that half but it wasn’t enough to overcome the deficit they had built up. In the end, the Dons were victorious 15-13 and head into the Diablo Athletic League (DAL) playoffs as the #1 seed, The DAL Semifinal game will be held tonight at 7:15 pm at Acalanes, where they will once again take on the feisty Miramonte Mats (#4 seed) in what is sure to be a barn-burner of a rematch.  

We hope all students and faculty will come tonight to cheer on your 12-2 Dons, now ranked 23rd in California, 7th in San Francisco Metro, 5th in the NCS, and 1st in the DAL! Go Dons!!