Acalanes Dons Men’s Lax Fall Just Short to the Rancho Cotate Cougars 9-11.

The Cougars came out swinging, jumping to an early 2-0 lead and looking to run away with it. But the Dons had no intention of rolling over. Grant Condy ignited the Acalanes sideline with a laser over the middle to put the Dons on the board. Moments later, Luke Dafferner threaded a needle-perfect pass to Caleb Mason, who buried it in the net to bring the game to 2-2.

The momentum swung like a pendulum. Rancho reclaimed the lead, only for Jackson Tseng to answer back with a beautiful strike. Tseng then turned playmaker, finding Grady Evans for a clinical finish that gave the Dons their first lead of the night at 4-3. However, Rancho showed their teeth, reeling off three straight goals to head into the locker room with a 6-4 advantage.

At halftime, the Dons honored the legacy of Matt Lynn. A former AHS standout and National Champion at UCSB, Matt’s 4.5-year battle with brain cancer serves as a permanent inspiration for the program. The tribute added a layer of “Dons Pride” to the evening, reminding everyone that while the score matters, the community matters more.

You can support the Matt Lynn Memorial Scholarship by donating to the Matt Lynn Foundation – Fundraiser. 100% of proceeds go directly to supporting future student-athletes.

The second half, the Dons went down 7-4, but the Dons’ defense, led by a relentless Ryan Yun and the scrappy middie play of Cade Korpita, began to lock in. Luke Dafferner took matters into his hands with a goal to cut the lead, then set up Caleb Mason for a “killer strike” that brought the Dons within one.

Every time Rancho tried to pull away, Acalanes answered. After Rancho went up 8-6, Grant Condy ripped a shot into the back of the net to make it 8-7. Then, it became the Grady Evans show. Evans found the back of the net once, then again off a brilliant feed from Condy to complete his hat trick and tie the game at 9-9.

With the game on a knife’s edge and the score deadlocked, both teams scrambled for the go-ahead goal, but in the final minutes, Rancho’s offense found a late surge, netting two quick scores to escape with the 11-9 win.

The Dons head into Spring Break with a loss on the scoreboard but momentum in their pocket. They’ll be itching to get back on the field in a week’s time.

Rest up, Dons. The comeback starts after break. Fear the blue!