High School Lacrosse Champs to Be Crowned in Georgetown
Teams from across the state converge on East View High School Stadium
By Kenny Pailes, 11:26AM, Sat. May 5, 2012
Local fans of men’s lacrosse have one last chance to catch the sport live and in-person this spring. The Texas High School Lacrosse League’s postseason tourney concludes this weekend. Eight teams from across the state converge on Georgetown ISD’s East View High School Stadium for the semifinals on Saturday and state championship games Sunday.
Efforts to host the state championships were led by members of the entire Georgetown community, which has embraced lacrosse with jaw-dropping enthusiasm. The three-year-old Georgetown Lacrosse Club has already grown to include more than 130 boys and girls in 5th-12th grades. Georgetown Lacrosse Coach Scott Conrad hopes the event will keep the local lacrosse energy high. “For us, it’s about exposure to help us grow our club and the sport. Being so far removed from the geographic nucleus of Central Texas lacrosse can prove to be a challenge, but we know we have something great to offer up here.”
“We want this to be more than just a few lacrosse games – the whole weekend is going to be a real event.” Conrad described halftime entertainment that will include fastest shot, most accurate shot, and trick shot contests sponsored by Warrior Lacrosse, plus raffles with prizes donated by South Swell Sports, Dicks Sporting Goods, and Adrenaline Lacrosse. Full concessions will be available on site, including slushies to help fans beat the mild heat forecast for the weekend.
Gates will open at 11:30 AM on Saturday, and the weekend’s first game will see San Antonio’s Division II Reagan face-off against Houston-area Klein at 12:30pm. The second Division II match-up includes one local team, St Michael’s Academy, who will face Highland Park II out of Dallas at 3pm.
The Division I Final Four follows at 5:30 PM with five-time state champion Highland Park battling intra-city rival Dallas Jesuit, who has yet to earn a trophy. At 7:00pm, Houston Christian will challenge yet another Dallas-area school, St. Marks, with both teams seeking their first state crown.
Sunday’s Division II and Division I Championship Games will be played at 1pm and 3:30pm, respectively. Both games will include statewide award presentations, including 2012 Texas Coach of the Year, Evan Whelchel, head coach of Austin-area Westlake High.
Sat., May 5 & Sun. May 6. East View High School Stadium, 4490 E. University, Georgetown. $10 (adults), $5 (children). www.texaslacrossechamps.org.
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