Midwest Region Notebook: St. Ignatius (Ohio) Shows Strengths

Team of the Week

The Brother Rice Warriors have earned the distinction this week.

Their game against Detroit Catholic Central (Mich.) has been the one they have been waiting for since Detroit Catholic Central ended their 14-year straight state championship run.

Brother Rice took this round, defeating DCC 16-5. The Warriors were out to make a statement.

The best part of this rivalry is there is a good chance these teams will play each other two more times this season.

Surprise Result of the Week

St. Ignatius (Ohio) impressed in games against MICDS (Mo.) and Cathedral (Ind.). Photo by Mike Loveday

St. Ignatius (Ohio) defeating MICDS (Mo.) gets the nod because most publications have MICDS as the best team in the Midwest.

St. Ignatius is a perennial power in Ohio, but several sources have mentioned to LaxRecords that this would not be the best year for them. They also have an early 18-8 loss to Brother Rice (Mich.).

St. Ignatius outplayed MICDS utilizing a strong faceoff game and excellent ball control. They moved the ball quickly and confidently, and it was great fundamental execution.

MICDS is talented, they have some great players, but St. Ignatius appeared to be more battle-tested early in the season.

This will be a wake-up call for MICDS, a confidence builder for St. Ignatius, and overall better lacrosse for us midwest high school lacrosse fans.

Eye-Opening Performance

This may seem a little odd, but great play is easy to recognize and Detroit Catholic Central's goalie Johnny Shea played great.

Detroit Catholic Central might have lost, but Shea had 15 saves in three quarters. Who knows what the score would’ve been without him.

Plenty of goalies have lost their cool when they are getting peppered, but Shea stayed cool and focused while facing a barrage of shots.

There are games when one team is on it, and the other team is not for whatever reason, but it would be a shame for a performance like Shea's to go unappreciated.

Players Take Top Honors

Just because it’s early in the season does not mean there are no big games in the midwest. Teams are hitting the road early, facing some of the top teams in adjacent states in addition to early-season meetings between state championship contenders.

Here are the games Michael Ward attended and handed out a Player of the Game award*.

March 26: Brother Rice (Mich.) 16 - Detroit Catholic Central(Mich.) 5
Player of the Game: Justin Glod, Brother Rice with six goals

March 27: New Trier (Ill.) 9 - St. Xavier (Ohio) 7
Player of the Game: Henry Scherb, New Trier with three goals

March 29: St. Xavier (Ky.) 10 - New Trier (Ill.) 5
Player of the Game: Joe Storner, St. Xavier with 17 saves

*March 30: St. Ignatius (Ohio) 14 - MICDS (Mo.) 8
*March 30: Upper Arlington (Ohio) 9 - Cathedral (Ind.) 8
*March 31: MICDS 10 - Upper Arlington 6
*March 31: St. Ignatius 11- Cathedral 8

*rosters were unavailable for these games, and no player of the game was selected

Other Players Who Stood Out

Graham Bundy from MICDS (Mo.). Photo by Mike Loveday