Due to a gap in the schedule and the recent weather, Coppell Boys Lacrosse played its first game in over two weeks, and the rust showed up a little early in the game. Coppell only scored once in the opening quarter, while Plano West scored three unassisted goals in the opening frame, two coming from Sophomore Wilson Murphree.
Coppell’s offense then came to life in the second quarter, led by a goal and an assist from Junior Walker Cain, which allowed Coppell to end the first half tied 4-4. The tie score at half was fitting, as the two teams played almost evenly throughout the remainder of the game, going back and forth in the scoring column, with neither team ever opening up more than a two goal lead at any point in the game.
The close play continued in the third quarter, with both teams scoring three goals each, to finish the frame with the score tied at 7-7. The defense for Coppell, working with short numbers and thin shifts in the game, were led by Juniors Ethan Bivens (4 ground balls won) and Brandon Point (3 ground balls won), and Sophomore Reid Robbins (3 ground balls won). Freshman Colton Delk played lock down defense and posted 1 forced turnover and 1 groundball.
Junior Face off specialist Reece Reynolds was dominant throughout the game, winning over 90% of the face off clamps and allowing Coppell to win possession on over 70% of the face offs in the game. Despite Coppell losing the turnover battle in the game, these extra possessions helped Coppell keep the score close.
Coppell’s scoring early in the 2nd half was largely supplied by Brandon Point (2 goals on the game) and Sophomore middie Peyton Barron (2 goals on the game), with each scoring a pair of critical unassisted goals to help Coppell keep pace. Juniors Walker Cain (3 goals, 1 assist on the game) and Luke Bivens, each added goals in the 4th quarter, giving Coppell a two-goal lead with just four minutes remaining, but Plano West was not finished either.
Plano West’s Murphree (3 goals, 2 assist on the game) assisted on a goal by the Wolves with 2:14 remaining, making it a tight 11-10 lead for Coppell. Plano West got another couple of quality shots off, but Sophomore goalie Hayden MacArthur made two big saves to hold the one-goal margin. The last of those saves looked to ice the game, but Coppell was called for illegal participation, giving Plano West a man up situation and the ball with seven seconds remaining in the game. The Coppell defenders prevented Plano West from getting a shot off before the clock ran out, and the Cowboys escaped with the 11-10 victory.
The Cowboys will turn around and play again the following day against 2-1 Houston Memorial at Lesley Field in Coppell.