The Crossfire played their final three games of the season last weekend, while visions of a playoff run danced in their heads.
A difficult game against the Stylers pushed the dream further away before a close loss against the LumberJax crushed the dream, while a second loss to the LumberJax added some salt to the wounds.
Thursday’s game against the Stylers started out with some promise as the first period was well contested, ending with the Crossfire in a two point hole at 6-4. Five minutes into the second a particularly hard check broke the glass, after which the Stylers seemed to get a boost, quickly running up the score. The Crossfire couldn’t recover and finished the game sitting in a very deep hole, at 23-8.
They came back to life in the Saturday game against the LumberJax. In a game that could have meant the difference between continuing into the post-season, or finishing until next year, the Crossfire fought hard to beat the LumberJax. The game was contested down to the final moments.
“We were in it right to the end,”Captain, Pat Gibbs said.
But in the end, the LumberJax managed to pull out the win, netting that one goal that made all the difference, with a final score of 15-14.
The last game saw a disheartened Crossfire face off against the LumberJax again. The Crossfire ran into some trouble with the referee in the game, Gibbs said.
The trouble saw #26, Cam Braun, one of the team’s highest scorers, sent to the dressing room.
Without the help of Braun, and with a lot of weight hanging heavy on their shoulders, the Crossfire couldn’t get the energy up to take the game in hand. The LumberJax took advantage, finishing off the Crossfire’s season with a 9-3 loss.
The three losses leaves the Crossfire with a 2-13 win/loss record for their first season.
For Gibbs, one of the initiators of the team, that record doesn’t sum up the season well.
“Despite the record, it was a very successful season,” he said.
With an initial team full of players who had never played lacrosse before, along with a lack of coaching staff and a lack of a junior team to draw players from, the season proved to be a classroom for the entire rookie team.
“It was a big learning year,” Gibbs said.
With the team’s two wins coming at the end, along with a few closely contested games coming at season’s end, the team
has been keeping their
nose in the books and
learning their lessons.
Now that they’ve learned, a summer break is in order to heal up from a rough season and bring their focus to their day jobs once again.
Though this year had its rough patches and ended as they were hitting their stride, the team is already looking to the future.
“Everyone is looking forward to next year,” Gibbs said.
The growth throughout the season wasn’t confined to the box either. The fans in town have grown along with the team.
“The first games we had 25-50 fans. On (last) Saturday we had close to 150,” Gibbs said.
Quite a few of those fans are children who play themselves. You’ll find them at the arena game after game, lacrosse sticks in hand, tossing a ball back and forth or spinning their sticks until a parent tells them to stop.
Lisa Scott, president of the local lacrosse association, is happy with the reception among the younger set.
“It’s been so positive. The kids are out to every game,” she said.
“It’s been everything I hoped for.”
Gibbs is happy he can be a part of encouraging the younger generation in the sport he loves.
“The kids who are playing lacrosse now have someone to look up to,” he said.
It’s a relationship the players are happy to encourage.
“They’re in the dressing room after the game, telling us ‘good game’ and bumping fists,” Gibbs said.
It’s not just the kids though. Scott said she is seeing some of the Crossfire players becoming more involved with the younger levels in coaching, which she is happy about.
As always, Gibbs, on behalf of the entire team, would like to give a huge thanks to Lisa Scott for helping start and build the team.