PNCLL Week #3 (2/20 - 2/26) -- Predict/Scores/Discuss

[Dan Wishengrad]

Friday, February 23rd
Colorado State 6 at Oregon 19

Saturday, February 24th
Central Washington 11 at Puget Sound 10
Gonzaga 3 at Washington 10
Idaho 2 at Simon Fraser 29
Sonoma State 9 at Oregon 13
Southern Oregon 8 at California 16
Whitman 5 at Pacific Lutheran 9
Willamette 8 at Linfield 9
Utah State vs Montana State (at Boise State)

Sunday, February 24th
Central Washington 5 at Pacific Lutheran 12
Gonzaga 8 at Simon Fraser 18
Idaho 10 at Washington 17
Sonoma vs Colorado State (at Oregon)
Western Washington 23 at Lewis & Clark 1
Whitman 11 at Puget Sound 6
Southern Oregon 8 at Dominican 9 (NCAA Div. II)
Sonoma State 7 vs Colorado State 17 (at Oregon)

For a week, anyway, the PNCLL becomes the center of our MCLA universe as #1 CSU (0-0) travels to Eugene to open defense of its crown with a round-robin against host Oregon (4-0) and #4 'Noma (1-0). Kyle will preview these games as well as the other A teams in action this week later in this thread.

Whitman(1-1) heads west for a couple key B Division games at undefeated PLU and UPS. I'm not certain who is coaching the Missionaries during Coach Schmitz's medical leave, but the team has performed well in a pair of tune-ups against A division opponents. The Whitman offense is being paced so far by Sophomore Matt Duncan (4g, 4a) and Freshman Bidnam Lee (4-2) on Attack, with Sophomore David Ogle (2,3) kicking-in from the midfield. A versatile Senior, Peter Drake (3, 1), provides on-field leadership and has bounced between attack and midfield in the past. A pair of upperclassmen, Chris Juergens at close-D and Matt Stenovec at LSM lead the Whitman Defense in front of Junior Goalie Kevin Wilson.

Central Washington (1-1) serves as Whitman's travel partner and makes the same trip to Tacoma for two games. After a convincing opening win against Linfield, CWU got stung 14-12 by WOU last week. The starting Attack of Chris Johnson (6, 3), J.R. de Raoulx (4,5) and Alan Colombo (4, 4) lead the Wildcat offense, which will have to step it up against Loggers and Lutes in these two games against the leaders of the PNCLL B-North. PLU and UPS (both 2-0) had successful road-trips to kick off their '07 campaign and therefore sit atop the early standings.

Western Washington (1-1) heads down I-5 for a Sunday game at Lewis & Clark(0-0), hoping to stay undefeated and no more than a game behind PLU and UPS in the competitive B-North. I confess to knowing nothing much about L&C other than they went 0-8 in '06 when they failed to score 5 goals in any game. The Pios have a decent-sized roster but only one player listed at Attack, a sign that doesn't bode well for a fix to the offensive woes in '07. Junior Goalie Raffy Cuevas is the most notable returner to the Lewis & Clark line-up.

Southern Oregon makes a third and final trip down to the Golden State. First up for the upstart Raiders is a game at the infamous Kleeburger Field at Cal (3-3), one of the most intimidating home venues in the MCLA. The A Division Golden Bears will prove a very tough test for SOU, to say the least. But this game will also be a memorable experience for a young B-team on the rise, even if it does turn out to be a painful one. Pressed up against a chain-link fence behind the narrow team bench area, there is no escape for a visiting team. A final stop for the Raiders is a game against Dominican (2-1). DU and SOU have played two common opponents already, with both teams defeating UCSC and UOP. Dominican has struggled mightily in its brief history playing lacrosse, but it is still a varsity opponent. SOU should have ample motivation to pull out all the stops in this one.

Willamette (1-3, 0-2) is at Linfield (0-3) Saturday. Both the Bearcats and Wildcats are looking for their first B-South win and a chance to stay on the edge of playoff contention. This could prove to be a competitive, entertaining game down in McMinnville.

Good luck, as always, to everyone.[/b]

[Steno]

Peter Lewicki, Whitman alum and current law student at Gonzaga, is acting as our head coach.

[Dr. Jason Stockton]

Southern Oregon makes a third and final trip down to the Golden State. First up for the upstart Raiders is a game at the infamous Kleeburger Field at Cal (3-3), one of the most intimidating home venues in the MCLA. The A Division Golden Bears will prove a very tough test for SOU, to say the least. But this game will also be a memorable experience for a young B-team on the rise, even if it does turn out to be a painful one. Pressed up against a chain-link fence behind the narrow team bench area, there is no escape for a visiting team.

I always hated Kleeburger field. . .mostly because we (the UC Davis Aggies) took some serious beatings on that horrible turf inside that cage. Cal was unbeatable on that field in the early 90's. . .good luck Raiders!!! You've been representing the league well with your strong play down in Cali.

[Ryan Hanavan]

Peter Lewicki, Whitman alum and current law student at Gonzaga, is acting as our head coach.

I give Peter a lot of respect. It was evident that his heart was in the Whitman program and he seems very commited to keeping things moving forward. He seems like a classy guy and I wish him all the best.

[Hi-Line Lax]

Good luck to the Ducks this weekend...unless CSU gets wise and puts my boy Bisnette in goal (then I gotta root for them). I'm looking forward to the outcomes of all the Eugene games this weekend.

[laxer818]

Peter Lewicki, Whitman alum and current law student at Gonzaga, is acting as our head coach.

I give Peter a lot of respect. It was evident that his heart was in the Whitman program and he seems very commited to keeping things moving forward. He seems like a classy guy and I wish him all the best.

Anyone who has ever gone to law school knows that it is extremely difficult to travel every weekend and to leave the friendly confines of one's routines as a law student. I'm really glad to see others acknowledging Pete for what he is doing. Pete is a good friend of mine and has done a tremendous job of keeping the Whitman squad focused and getting them prepared for gametime.

[Hi-Line Lax]

Speaking of law students making the commitment... I guess this would be a good time to publicly welcome the newest member of the Grizzlies sideline crew, Philip Rolfing. Philip is a former goalie for Florida and current law student at UM. He will be joining myself (when I'm not playing) and former captains Gabe Krenza and Ryan Frey (whenever he gets back here). I'm pretty excited for the help and I think he will be a great addition to our program.

[Scrape Mode]

I always hated Kleeburger field. . .

Kleeburger (now Maxwell) conjures up fond memories of childhood fun. They've got new turf now and the home team is definitely not what it was... Good luck to Southern Oregon.

[lincoln02]

Congrats to the Raiders on their 21st rank in the new polls.

Good luck down in California this weekend!

Also, good to see PLU and UM rounding out the polls with solid rankings for the pncll.

Cheers!

[Hi-Line Lax]

Nice work SOU, though I imagine your stock still has some rising to do.

[woulax23]

so i was wasting some time in front of my computer right now and i re-read dan's original posting on here, and i have to say that i am actually really excited to see the scores of some of these games this weekend. This weekend's schedule should really start to shape up the picture in the B-North division. I mean with PLU, UPS, Central, and Whitman all kind of mashing up games against each other a real dominant team could come away happy. If all of the teams split wins with others than it will provide an exciting race for the playoffs in the North and it will showcase the talent that might be spread across the board for all of those teams. However on the flip side, if a team comes out 2-0 they will be set up very well for a playoff spot, especially if they get two wins that aren't too close. Lewis and clarke also has the chance to come out and maybe surprise the league with a close game, or even a win......?, against WWU. Overall I feel like this weekend is going to end up playing a big part in the play-off picture later in the season. Get those scores in as quick as you can guys, those of us without games this weekend will probably be glued to this forum.

[I'm back baby!!!]

It's true, I'm meltin the horse hooves right now.

[Dr. Jason Stockton]

For those of you not following along on the "live action game reports" portion of the forum. . .

Oregon just crushed the #1 team in the country, Colorado State. You can go read the posts if you want to know how it went down, but the final score was 19-6 Oregon. . .They were up 11-1 at halftime, and coasted to victory.

Absolutely amazing, and the biggest win on a National stage for our league in many, many years. . .

Congrats to Joe Kerwin and his Ducks. . .finish the deal this weekend against the Cossacks!!!

[pncllfan2006]

Wow, probably the biggest win for the PNCLL since SFU won the semi finals at nationals in 1999

[woulax23]

i am absolutely speechless...... way to go ducks!!!!!!